Disintegration
by Just Page
Summary: What one calls unrelenting love, another would call dangerously obsessive. Unfortunately, Peyton Sawyer found herself on the recieving end of such affections. Only one person was there to tend to her after her ordeal, but still she needs so much more.
1. Running Up That Hill

**AN**: Ah! I welcome you to my newest endeavor as I take a break from the sequel to my other story. So, one day I was perusing the One Tree Hill section, trying to find some new fics to read. And then something hit me over the head like a lobster on a ranch in Texas: Peyton and Rachel. SO I made my way over to the search engine, input the pair and came up with a **very** limited selection. I was all "EGAD! How caneth this be-eth?" And here we are. Hope you like it.

**X x X **

**Chapter One** – Running Up That Hill

_Song by Placebo_

**X x X **

In her lifetime, no one had yet explained to her the positive affects of reliving painful memories. You were supposed to try and forget the bad and remember those joyful times. In her eighteen years, her bad times out lapped the good by almost double if not more. There were certain things that shaped the person you were to become for the rest of your life.

The mug clanked on the counter top, the hollowness of the sound filling the entire kitchen in the silence. These days, speaking was optional. She rarely even took steps outside of her own home. She would attend school and say no more than two sentences the entire day. She had considered getting her GED just to avoid leaving the shattered safety of her home. She had no other place to which she could flee.

Blonde tendrils fell in front of her face. She knew that she had taken quite a few unhealthy turns for the worst. Her skin had been a nice color that showed she received a good amount of sun. Now it was severely lacking in melanin, turning pale and almost ghostly. Nothing really fazed her anymore. She must have painted her room at least three times.

Peyton sighed and held her face in her hands. Misery had a way of being so woefully attracted to her. Yeah, sometimes she would flirt with the prospect of happiness; go on a few dates with it. Things would go well for a while with the steady relationship. In the end, however, she always wound up right where she began, in the loving embrace of loneliness and pain. She knew every inch of this territory.

If there was one thing that hated most about it – it would be that she was alone. She had no one to stop her downward spiral to hell. Peyton had literally shoved Lucas out of her world with angry words and slammed doors. She had refused to pick up his phone calls in the following couple of days. It had been almost a week and a half since the prom. The night of everyone else's lives had almost been the end of hers.

She lifted her head up again and restlessly forced herself to start walking around again. If she stayed put for too long, she started going back to that pit of despair. Very few people knew of her fate that night. The majority simply thought she was being an emo child and avoiding the prom for something else. Brooke had no idea. Haley. Lucas. Nathan. Karen. All of them were among the deceived.

Of course, she thought bitterly, why the hell would Brooke care what happened to her? She would be with her best friend, Rachel, probably shopping for something or other. Her mind remained on that subject for a couple of minutes, thinking of only one person with a certain myriad of emotions swirling around indecisively. One person – the least likely – had become key in her current existence.

One pale digit traced gingerly along her dark blue spotted clavicle, the other hand resting just below her breasts. There was a particular part on her collarbone that held a series of navy and eggplant bruises in the shape of fingerprints. Usually she covered it up with a sweatshirt, like a turtle hiding itself in its shell. Now that she thought about it, it was around that time in the afternoon. Peyton's eyes flitted around the kitchen at the sound of a key in the front door. Her body and mind were in full flight mode.

"Peyton?" It was a quiet voice, slightly worried. That note of concern was like that of a friend. Only Peyton got to hear the voice at that particular level and in that tone. Not that it mattered to her at all. There were footsteps in the front hall before they diverted themselves toward the kitchen. Even though she was familiar with the person and routine, she still stiffened at the presence. Ever since her _ordeal_, the word seemed so empty to her, she had refused most human contact. However, she had picked up a new companion to spend her time with.

Actually, she had picked up two companions. They took away some of the loneliness that consumed her most of the time. Peyton carefully maneuvered her body out the path of the hand that had tentatively hovered above her shoulder. She would avoid physicality at all costs. There was a scrabbling of nails on the wood floor out front, soon followed by the appearance of a certain ball of fuzz.

Ellie stood in the door to the kitchen, one tan and black ear perked while the other one was lopped to one side. Her face was very expressive with her beige eyebrows against the contrasting black of her face. As far as German shepherds went, Peyton thought that Ellie was rather peculiarly colored. Her body was almost completely black except for her left ear, hind paws, brows and a thin stripe on her chest.

"Hey Ellie, have you been taking care of Peyton for me?" Her counterpart knelt down, stroking the soft fluff that covered Ellie's immature body. Some days ago, Peyton had gone to an animal shelter and had spotted her puppy alone in a cage. The little dog was still bulking up, but at least she was at a slightly healthier weight. For some reason, Peyton had found herself irresistibly pulled to the emaciated puppy.

Ellie made a yip and wagged her tail joyfully at the attention she received. Usually her day consisted of Peyton furtively letting her out the front door for a few minutes so she could do her business and then following her owner up to her bedroom. Peyton just felt more secure with the dog in the house with her. It was always better, in her opinion, to know when someone might possibly be lurking around outdoors. That was why she had Ellie at her side at all times.

"Can I get you anything right now?" Rachel wore that look of disquiet. Peyton mutely shook her head, once more dipping her body to avoid touching the other girl. The redhead sighed and looked after Peyton as she headed into the den. She had to think to herself – how did they wind up here?

It was so strange not mentioning anything to her best friend, Brooke. But, she just couldn't bring herself to betray Peyton like that. She had been known to be cruel and almost heartless at times, but this was someone she had come to personally know. The circumstances leading to which she had somehow found herself wanting to look after Peyton were among the worst possible.

Brooke had actually been vaguely worried about Peyton, though thrilled to see Rachel show up at the prom. So, after a dance with Mouth, Brooke promptly asked her to 'please' go check and make sure Peyton was all right by herself. The prom had been going on for quite a while, almost near the end. Being the good friend she was, Rachel submitted and finally did what was asked of her.

Her eyes followed Ellie as she padded after the blonde, ears flopping all the while and her tongue lolling out between pointed white teeth. The puppy was good for her – it should have been therapeutic in a way. Rachel stood where she was for a moment, just thinking and giving Peyton her space. She waited for about two minutes before silently moving to check up on her. Peyton was curled into a corner of the couch, Ellie sitting right beside her. The TV was on, but it just didn't register in her mind.

When she finally arrived at Peyton's place of residence, she had waited outside for someone to answer the door for a full fifteen minutes. Having never actually seen Psycho Derek up close and personal, it didn't seem significant to her when a blonde male dressed in a white wife-beater exited the door. His blue eyes had an unnerving quality about them and were one of the most memorable traits he had. He carried a bag over the shoulder and a camera in his opposite hand.

Within two minutes, he was gone. She hadn't paid any attention to where he went. Rachel invited herself inside and began her search for Brooke's ex-best friend. After looking in her room, the kitchen, the den, her father's room and various other locations, she had been about to give up on her quest. Until she heard a muffled sound as she passed by a door she brushed off as unlikely. Rachel had paused until she heard another noise from below in the basement.

And so, of course, she pulled open the door and ventured into what she would soon consider the depths of hell. Her body had refused to obey her mind the moment she reached the bottom of the stairs. Well, at least she knew what the noises had been. It had been Peyton sobbing. Rachel couldn't imagine a single person that deserved to be put through what Peyton had just suffered.

After regaining her senses, she had quickly pulled off her leather jacket and stepped forward to cover Peyton with it. She had had to stop herself from adding her own tears to Peyton's. The blonde had quickly shrunk back from her, ignoring even the friendliest of gestures and receiving every move she made with fear. Her arms had been bound together behind her back; her palms and wrists were bloody where she had tried to use her nails to get rid of her bindings.

Rachel hadn't wanted to traumatize her or make her any more distressed than she already was. She had taken slow steps toward her and soon knelt right next to her. Peyton had whimpered through the gag in her mouth, her eyes squeezed shut. It had taken her about twenty minutes to get Peyton to relax just enough for her to take off the gag, the rope tying her forearms together and wrap her in the jacket. Peyton had adamantly refused to leave the house, though she hadn't said a word.

It had left Rachel with only one option. She had led the blonde up to the bathroom in her room. After taking a minute to just examine Peyton's room, she had settled her down on a small stool. Rachel had retrieved a couple of towels and, after doing a lot of recon, managed to scrounge up some Neosporin, hydrogen peroxide, gauze and bandages. They had been tucked away in a cabinet, as though they never expected to be used.

Since that night, Rachel had become accustomed to making her appearance at Peyton's home, just to make sure she was all right. She had seen her only a few times at school and even then she skirted around people as though they were the plague. She pushed her hair back from her face as she waited in the doorway, trying to figure out what next to do with her time with Peyton.

Brooke had once attempted to reconcile with Peyton after the attack, wanting to know that she at least cared enough to hate her. Of course, she had been ignorant about her tortuous hours in the basement with Psycho Derek. Peyton hadn't known the brunette was there until a hand was laid on her shoulder. At that moment of contact, she leapt up, spun around and immediately fled to her car. Brooke had looked confused, worried and somewhat annoyed all at the same time. She had consulted Rachel, who had swallowed the truth and shrugged. If she wanted people to know, she should have the right to tell them herself.

Her heart clenched every time she saw the person that Peyton had become. She used to be strong and confident in her own ways. Now she was completely vulnerable and, as a result, had closed herself off to trust and love. She was now utterly convinced of the omnipresence of pain and the ever-looming threat of betrayal. Peyton had readily welcomed Derek into her life and he had ended up turning her very existence into her own personal hell.

Rachel hesitated before continuing into the room. Peyton jerked almost unnoticeably, her big green eyes moving over to observe the redhead. The teenager had become somewhat comfortable with her continual presence. She was consistent with how she acted around Peyton, trying to earn her trust. So far, she had only accepted her and had minimal faith in her.

"Hey, Peyton." Rachel seated herself on the edge of an armchair, leaning her body forward and resting her elbows on her knees. "You know you need to eat. Can I get you something specific?" At the slight shake of her head, Rachel frowned, but didn't want to push too hard. "Are you sure? Chicken and stars? It's in the pantry." It wasn't received with outstanding popularity, but she was hardly about to give up. However, she did resort to pleading. "Please Peyton? Just eat a little."

At that, the blonde sighed and tilted her head forward. Rachel then grinned, whistled softly and hopped to work. Literally, she did a little bounce when she got to her feet. If Brooke saw her like that, she would want to know what drugs she was on or if she had met some really hot guy that made her happy. She would probably use the latter as an excuse. Ellie whined at Peyton, poking her in the arm with her little wet nose before heading after Rachel. Of course, Peyton reluctantly followed her puppy.

Ellie gave her loudest bark; ears perked and head tilted. She was eagerly awaited her reward for being a good girl and coming when Rachel whistled. The senior laughed and tossed the German shepherd a dog biscuit. Rachel's parents, finally stepping into their roles for a few hours before jetting off somewhere, had managed to get the principal to readmit Rachel into the school. She knew it was a good thing, but she just couldn't help it when she was glancing around and trying to find Peyton in the sea of people.

For all the things she couldn't do with the culinary arts, she could at least read the directions on the soup can label. As the cold broth, mini stars, carrots and water heated up on the stove, Rachel turned to watch Peyton. There were some moments, like the one present in front of her, that reminded her of how much pain Peyton had been through in her life.

At that second, the blonde was sitting on a stool with her arms tightly folded across her smooth tummy. Her oversized clothes made her seem that much smaller, even though it was a fact that Peyton was a tall individual. It was one of the few times that Peyton accidentally let her guard down and showed what she was feeling. She was nervous and vulnerable and edgy and a whole score of other unpleasant emotions. Ellie lay by the legs of the seat, head on her paws.

Now, Rachel had felt certain things towards other girls before and had never acted on any of them. But, this time was far different. From the moment she had laid eyes on Peyton, she knew there was something about her that made her want to be friends. The bad part was that she had flirted with Brooke's unofficial boyfriend the day before the tryouts. So, it was far harder to gain any kind of relationship with the broody cheerleader. Of course, it really had stayed at that borderline civil place ever since Brooke and Peyton's falling out. And then she had arrived after Derek left the second time and that was that. Rachel wanted to be close to Peyton, but she needed her to get back to trusting people again. Before that, she needed to make sure to get her healthy again. Her weight had dropped dramatically since the attack – it was quite the cause for concern.

After everything else, there was one more thing she needed to do. She had to get Peyton and Brooke back on speaking terms. Brooke had actually voiced concern about her ex-best friend to Rachel once. She had noticed her in the locker room before physical education class. It had been three days after the attack and Peyton had stopped eating at all, only occasionally getting something to drink. Peyton had looked only marginally thinner than before. It had gotten much worse.

The water bubbled lazily behind her back, catching her attention by sending a boiling droplet onto her bare arm. Rachel winced and quickly turned off the heat, grabbed a bowl from a cupboard and ladled soup into said bowl. Peyton looked from her bowl to Rachel, almost expectantly, as though she wanted Rachel to eat with her. So, not wanting to disappoint, the redhead fixed her own serving.

"R…Rachel," The voice startled her, immediately grabbing her green-eyed gaze. Ellie's head tilted to the side and she yipped her little puppy yip. Rachel was so used to having a one-sided conversation in the Sawyer residence. It was nice to hear Peyton's voice again, even if it was a bit quiet and hoarse for lack of use. Her tone was sincere, "Thank you…for everything."

She could tell that Peyton seemed to at least be making an effort to show her that she wanted to trust her. She was trying. Rachel gave her a reassuring smile and didn't try to press her into continuing the conversation. She suddenly remembered something and rummaged around in the purse she had deposited by the table. A grin spread over her features as she pulled half of a dozen CDs from the bag.

She spread them before Peyton, letting her carefully look over every cover. There was the Come Clean album from Puddle of Mudd, A Beautiful Lie from 30 Seconds to Mars, All We Know Is Falling from Paramore, Promise of Love by American Analog Set, Composure from Waking Ashland and a mix she had put together specifically for Peyton. No matter what, she knew that Peyton would still appreciate new music. They spent a couple of minutes in silence as Peyton pored over the tracks, absentmindedly eating her soup. This was one of the few times that Rachel got to catch a glimpse of the old Peyton Sawyer, the one that was confident and successful with her job at Tric.

She put all of her attention into concentrating on the lyrics that she read in the cover booklets. Well, it was, at the very least, a way to make sure that Peyton ate. Rachel finished her own rapidly cooling soup, being sure that her companion had eaten every bit of the chicken and stars. Her cell phone rang loudly, causing the semi-relaxed blonde to jump to her feet, bright green eyes wide and frightened. Just a shell of her former self. Ellie tilted her head, mouth opened slightly as she yawned.

Rachel gave her an apologetic grimace as she checked the number, pressed the green answering button and held it to her ear. Brooke would be the one to interrupt what little progress she had made. "What's up?"

"_Hey! Where are you? You left early after school today, what's with that?_" Peyton's eyes narrowed as she heard the voice, but she didn't make any move to leave. She stiffly resumed her seat, elbows shifted forward just a bit in a blatantly defensive position as she continued her thorough examination of each disk, not wanting to miss a single thing. She was carefully looking over the lyrics for Blurry by Puddle of Mudd.

"I'm sorry, Brooke. I just needed – to go do something. There's something I've been checking up on." Her intestines twisted uncomfortably in her abdomen the moment the fallacy left her lips. It just felt so wrong to lie to Brooke, especially about where she was and what she was doing. Peyton would tell her, hopefully, in her own time and in her own way. Of course, she wouldn't be surprised if Peyton just didn't want to talk about it. Almost twelve days after the attack and she still bore the marks of her assailant.

"_Oh…is it something I can help with? Is everything okay, Rachel?_" Brooke's voice indicated her worry and hesitance to let the matter go. Despite her faults, Brooke was a good friend. She had pure intentions with what she did, at least most of the time. She actually worried about her friends and was comforted when she knew her loved ones were okay.

"Trust me, it's fine. At least it's getting better, you know? Just obligations, Brooke. Don't worry about it." There was that painful twinge in her stomach again. If anything, Brooke should have been worrying about Peyton the most. Their fight was stupid. As far as Rachel was concerned, Brooke should have been there for Peyton after Derek's first attack. She should have been just as suspicious of the so-called long lost brother. Rachel never got the chance to meet him until seeing him for only a second after the prom and now she looked around the neighborhood carefully, scrutinizing every suspicious individual.

"_If you say so._" Of course she was uncertain. "_Talk to you later, right?_"

"Absolutely. Later, Brooke." And then there was nothing. Rachel sighed and pushed the phone back into her jacket pocket. Peyton had returned to hiding behind her little shield of silence. The redhead stood and took a slow step closer to her. Peyton gave her an odd look, but didn't protest. "Peyton, could I take a look…?"

The fragile body before her tightened, becoming as rigid as a board. Rachel regretted bringing it up, but knew that she had to. It was another sadistic mark left by Psycho Derek. Actually, it was from that particular injury that Rachel learned his real name. His obsession with Peyton had been limited with the use of the alias. So, he had tattooed his real name onto her flesh, just not in the traditional manner. She carefully offered a hand to Peyton, who cringed back and proceeded on her own to the couch once more, Ellie right on her heels.

Once she had made herself as comfortable as possible on the soft cushions, Peyton allowed Rachel to proceed with lowering her jeans, even if it was only a few inches. The moment her pelvis was in view, Rachel took her hand into her own and squeezed a bit. She had to use her free hand to gingerly peel away the red-tinged bandages. Beneath the amateur dressing was a still healing wound. The deep, nasty looking cuts (made by way of a blade) wrote a single word in her flesh.

Devin.

Rachel had to keep checking to make sure they hadn't become infected or anything like that. Peyton couldn't so much as look at the name without having tears form in the corners of her eyes. Green eyes averted themselves, gazing off blankly to the side. Peyton was shutting off her emotions, just for the duration of Rachel's quick look-over. Rachel got it over with as fast as possible. When she finished, she stroked Peyton's hand comfortingly with her thumb before releasing her.

"Get some sleep, okay, Peyton? Put on some music, do whatever helps." Rachel put on a brave, strong face for Peyton's sake. "Don't push yourself to the point that you just hurt yourself more. Be sure to keep Ellie with you." Her mute charge just nodded as she hastily re-zipped the jeans and forced herself to her feet. "I'll see you later. I promise. Just call me if you need anything."

Peyton managed a half-hearted smile and disappeared to go up to her bed. Ellie loyally padded after her, nails clicking on the hardwood. Rachel felt guilty for leaving her, but she had to go see Brooke before she got suspicious. As usual, she would keep her promise and return in only a few hours. Peyton needed sleep. Those dark circles under her eyes proved it. Rachel sighed, running her nimble fingers through her hair as she retrieved her bag and headed for the door. Before this, she hadn't believed in those brutal evils of everyday men. Devin had certainly planted that fear into her heart, and had done so much worse to Peyton.


	2. Never Too Late

**AN**Thanks for the reviews, y'all. I'm gonna be random and tell you that my AIM screen name is FRLB11. Why? Cause I'm just like that. Time for the chapter.

**R**

**Chapter Two:** Never Too Late

_Song by Three Days Grace_

**A**

"So, are you going to tell me where you were yesterday, or do I have to guess?" Rachel rolled her eyes at her friend's persistent queries. Brooke hadn't been letting up on the whole thing, despite Rachel's attempts at changing the subject. She had an idea brewing, but wasn't quite sure what to do with it. Though, Brooke would probably help her with it…and just maybe…

"Nah, I think I'll just let you think about it for a while." Brooke made a face at her, half playful and half irritable. Rachel knew that Brooke hated it when she kept secrets from her. She hated it when any of her friends lied to her.

"Anyway, I have a proposal for you miss Davis." Rachel grinned, trying to get her friend interested in what she was about to say. That smile told her that it had worked, the eyes glowing with bated excitement. They stopped their walk across the dock. It was a brighter day than it had been. The sun would sometimes hide behind the thick grey plumes floating above.

"So, bestest friend, what did you have in mind?" The brunette tossed back her hair from her face. Rachel paused. She was still becoming accustomed to Brooke's little nicknames. She really wasn't used to anyone calling her, 'bestest friend'.

"Anyway, we've got a vacation coming up, right?" Rachel waited for Brooke to nod in confirmation, which she did. It was extremely strange, though. A vacation for the seniors so close to graduation. Following directly after the dozen days of freedom break, they would have their exams to work through and then they'd finally graduate from high school. Well, in June they would graduate.

"I was thinking – how about we take a trip up to my parents' house down at the beach? It'd be fun. We'd start driving on Friday after school and then we'd have twelve days with our friends. It's not like any of our parents are going to take us places." The smile broke into a full-blown grin.

"You are brilliant. Wait – how many houses do your parents have?" Brooke looked surprised at the mention of yet another house. They had taken a trip up to the 'rustic' house in the mountains pretty soon after the school shooting. Hell, the trips always had a couple of revelations and plenty of cool things to do.

"Who knows? Anyway, we'll start packing tomorrow and I'll invite a couple of people today. Sound good?" Of course, one of those people would be someone far from willing to go on the excursion without a bit of persuasion. And it would be a certain blonde with whom Brooke was currently estranged.

"Sounds awesome. Now…we're gonna be late for fourth period."

**C**

"So, that's Bevin, Skills, Nathan, Haley, Lucas. Oh, Mouth. And, of course, me and Brooke." Green eyes studied her suspiciously, but she plunged forward in her quest nevertheless. "Now – would you come too? It's not a party without P. Sawyer and her music, right?"

"You're kidding, right?" Her voice was flat and didn't offer even a little room for argument. "You want me to be in the same house with Brooke for – what? – twelve days straight?

Hey, at least Peyton was speaking to her more. Ellie suddenly barked loudly, making them both jump. Both young women froze, their eyes fixed in the direction of the door. The puppy ran into the kitchen, yapped, and then ran back into the front hall. There was a moment of silence before she starting scratching at the door and howling in her high-pitched tone. She stopped and returned to her place at Peyton's feet.

Neither voiced what they were thinking, but Rachel fought to get her back onto the topic at hand and away from the thought that Devin might be just outside. It was highly unlikely – but…

"Anyway, please Peyton? You can drive up with me. I'm going to be carrying a lot of the luggage in my trunk and backseat, so it'd just be us. Bevin is going up with Skills and Mouth. Nathan and Lucas are driving up with Haley. Brooke is actually bringing up Gabrielle, remember her? She's varsity soccer. Really cool. Brooke's been hanging out with her when I'm not around. So…are you okay with this? Please come."

"I'll think about it…" Peyton looked exhausted. It could most likely be attributed to her lack of sleep. That was another thing that she needed to work on. Being able to sleep through the night without having night terrors lurking behind each closed eyelid. She grimaced and gestured to the den, her eyes occasionally shooting to keep an eye on the front door, almost as though she were scared that it would suddenly burst open and reveal the cause of her ever-present trepidation. "Do you wanna stay for a movie?"

Well, that was a pretty big step. Peyton had never verbally invited her to stay over before. It could only be taken as a good sign – hopefully.

"Sure. You want pizza, blondie?" She nodded with the slightest nervousness before making her way to the couch. Ellie yipped, looked between the pair and hopped up onto Peyton's lap.

They had only one dilemma within the next few minutes and it happened to be deciding on a movie to watch. Rachel brought up Bring It On: All or Nothing, to which Peyton rolled her eyes and muttered something about a chick flick. In turn, Peyton had mentioned The Blair Witch Project, earning the priceless scene of Rachel gaping at her for the idea. So, they had a little time bickering over movies before Ellie, getting quite annoyed at the pair for disturbing her nap, whined and jumped from her seat. Consequently, she landed on the controller and accidentally chose the movie for them.

And so…it was the beginning track of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire that shut them both up. Both looked bemused before seeing Ellie with her tail wagging and her back paw next to the remote. Peyton had to laugh, even as she lifted her puppy into her arms to settle back down. Ellie made another very puppy-ish noise and licked her owner right on the nose before curling up into a furry ball of cuteness.

During the movie, Rachel could hardly take her eyes off of the blonde next to her. Her companion, on the other hand, had become absorbed into the movie. The sun had quickly dipped behind the ends of the earth, hiding itself until the next day. The moon had taken its rightful place high in the darkened heavens. It peered in through the windows, keeping a watchful eye on the pair of them.

Rachel just couldn't pull her attention to the movie even as she listened to the dialogue spoken in rich British accents. The moonlight made Peyton glow and she seemed to radiate the kind of beauty bred from innocence while still managing to look like a very hot Aphrodite. Her emerald eyes were greener than anything Rachel had seen before and her complexion was absolutely flawless. Well, at least it was in her eyes.

Anyone else who set eyes on her might be taken aback by the sheer number of injuries that her expanse of flesh seemed to hold. Bruises, abrasions and permanent scarring marred certain parts of her body, but the former of the three were simply temporary…unlike the word sliced into her pale skin.

Her heart fluttered uncomfortably as a couple of very guilty thoughts entered into her conscience mind. They were things that would be highly inappropriate and it made her grateful that Peyton was no mind reader. She squirmed in her seat, feeling heat race up her neck and spread throughout her body. She knew that she must have been burning a flaming red at that point. She was imagining herself doing certain things to Peyton that she certainly shouldn't have been.

Rachel suddenly had to force herself away, her eyes switching over to the television screen. There was a cute little redheaded girl talking to a boy who also had redhead; she could only guess that it was the boy who played Ronald Weasley. Her mind absently searched for bits of information that she recalled from the books and first three movies. Ah, right. The little girl was Ginny. From there, the rest of the details appeared in her brain. Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and the rest of that redheaded family. The blonde antagonist, Malfoy.

It didn't seem even close to being as important as Peyton had become. But, she would have a difficult time making an excuse if Peyton caught her staring with slightly parted lips. So, it was better to keep her thoughts occupied with thoughts of J.K Rowling's mystical and fantastic universe.

Anyway, moving one. Emma Watson…the actress playing Hermione. Oh…niiiccee. If only she were a bit older…like eighteen. She dragged her mind away from those waters. If she thought about that girl for too long, it would eventually bring her right back to the young woman she was trying to avoid. And so her brain kind of flittered all over the place for the next hour and a half. She kept thinking about Brooke and the trip and what Peyton's answer might be and how the trip might go. She could only imagine what mess they would get themselves into down at the beach. With that many teenagers, probable alcohol and the number of days they'd spend together, the possibilities could be endless.

She was so caught up in trying not to concentrate on Peyton that she almost didn't hear her when she spoke during the last moments of the movie. Those bright jade orbs were locked onto her own hazel. Behind everything, every erected wall and barrier, she could see the faintest outline of some kind of trust.

"I'll go."

Rachel smiled brightly. She knew that Peyton wouldn't feel one-hundred percent comfortable with the whole idea, but at least she was willing to give it a try. Now, all she had to do was find someway to get Peyton and Brooke to just talk. Nothing more or less. They just needed to work out their problems. Whether they could do that without the truth of Peyton's prom night, she wasn't sure. It was a pretty huge thing to keep secret, after all.

"Great, you can even bring Ellie. Now, since I know you'll wait until the absolute last minute, we're going to go pack. Now. Okay? Because we leave the day after tomorrow? Now, up you get." Rachel helped the pitiful looking blonde to her feet, the puppy leaping to her paws to sleepily follow wherever they went.

Once in her room, Rachel carefully shut the door behind Ellie. She knew that no one else was in the house, but it seemed to make Peyton feel more secure. She examined the contents of her closet before beginning her commentary. She knew that Peyton wouldn't like her suggestion, but she would listen despite that fact.

"It's going to be hot on some days…so you can't wear those oversized clothes you like so much. But –" She raised a hand to stop Peyton's protests, "I have some good cover-up you can use on the more obvious bruises. Otherwise you can wear one of those little jackets, all right? ...Good. But, just choose a couple of tanks, tees, bathing suits, you know, beachy things. Like…this one." She pulled a little red bikini from the hangers and held it out. Rachel gestured for her to go try it on. Peyton gave a resigned little sigh before disappearing into the bathroom.

When she exited, Rachel's chest tightened uneasily. Peyton had her arms crossed protectively over her chest, her legs straight and stiff. She was beautiful and broken at the same time. Rachel could see individual ribs, the faintest red edge of the psycho Devin's mark, bruises and small scratches all over the place. The dark violently blatant bruises littered her upper chest, clavicle and shoulders. A bite mark was obvious on her left shoulder, the skin still an irritated pink. He'd done quite the number on her.

"Look, you can wear a sarong or t-shirt over it, okay?" Peyton couldn't seem to bring her gaze up to Rachel's, so she just nodded. "You look good in it, for what it's worth."

Peyton managed a weak smile before hurrying into the safety of her overly large flannel shirt and black sports shorts. Rachel knew it would be quite some time before Peyton would be able to wear anything quite so revealing again. It left her very little to hide behind and her vulnerability was painfully easy to see.

**H**

"Be nice, Brooke."

"Whaatt? I'm not the one who got up and ran like I saw a ghost the last time we tried to talk." Brooke's tone was grudging and annoyed. Her eyes were clouded with unadulterated irritation as she gazed as the person who used to be her best friend – the one that would always put "hoes over bros" with her. Well, as far as Brooke was concerned, that was all over.

"She's been through a lot. Cut her some slack, miss grouchy." Rachel was doing her best not to just tell her exactly what she had been through, just to make her stop shooting glares in Peyton's direction. The blonde was awkwardly waiting by Rachel's car, her dog hidden behind her legs. Ellie wasn't the best about coming out and meeting strangers. No one apart from Rachel actually knew that she had a dog. Haley was talking to her with Nathan, completely oblivious to the ball of fluff that was halfway under the car. Rachel could only guess that she would come out when everyone left. All of the cars were loaded and the seating and driving arrangements had been finalized.

Gabrielle was talking to Lucas and Mouth animatedly, arguing over which was the better sport: basketball or soccer. They just couldn't come to a compromise. Eventually Nathan wandered over and joined in the little debate. There were several mentions of J.J Redick, Brandi Chastain, Michael Jordan and David Beckham. Also several coaches, like Coach K, were used to try and win some ground. Of course, every time one point was made it would be combated with an opposing side.

Gabrielle was tall with a slight frame and light skin. Freckles sprinkled over her nose and her hair was like a very light coffee. Tim had actually hit on her quite a few times until she smacked him over the head with a basketball. Rachel had been there and wouldn't trade that memory for anything. Tim had muttered something and skulked off to hit on some other unfortunate lady. Nathan had rolled his eyes at the entire fiasco.

"Time to go. Brooke, you and Gabrielle go first. Haley, you follow with Nathan and Lucas. Bevin, Skills, Mouth, you start off fourth. Peyton and I will bring up the back, that sound fair enough?" She received no complaints as everyone broke into their groups. Gabrielle grinned and waved to Mouth, who flushed slightly and waved back. She laughed and finally got into the front seat next to Brooke. They would switch off after an hour or so.

Silence fell as car doors closed and locked, engines revved to life and wheels carried their vehicles away. Rachel gave Peyton a little smile as Ellie crept out from under the car, her eyes staring after the cars. Peyton returned the little smile before ducking into Rachel's car, her dog hopping in after her. Ellie had a bit of trouble, but she finally managed after a few seconds. Rachel made sure that everything was working and was in the right place before taking her place in the driver's seat.

She let Peyton have all the quiet she wanted as they pulled onto the roads leading away from Tree Hill. God – the city held so many dark secrets and memories of pain. It would be nice to get away. They all needed it. Peyton most of all. Everything was just chock full of badness, maybe Rachel could help Peyton make some better memories to carry with her. And just maybe, they'd help her get past all of the terrible things that happened to her.

Peyton looked exhausted, though she didn't know why. Maybe Peyton had had another one of her nightmares. They plagued her like disease. Thirty minutes slipped by in a haze, Peyton restlessly shifting herself around, her eyes focusing randomly out of the window. Ellie curled up on Peyton's lap, nose tucked under Peyton's arm. Those thirty minutes transformed lazily into an hour. By the time another half of an hour came and went, Peyton had relinquished herself to sleep.

By no means were her dreams peaceful or happy, but at least she could rest. Rachel couldn't decide whether to wake her up or let her continue on in her darkened REM sleep. And so, she just continued driving and feeling utterly helpless about the whole situation. Ellie whined and nuzzled her owner, reaching up to press her wet nose against Peyton's cheek.

Rachel remembered the first time she had stayed over at Peyton's to keep an eye on her. She remembered hearing the girl suddenly scream and wake up, looking scared of everything. It hadn't been more than two days after Devin's assault. She had staggered out of bed, fell to her knees in front of the toilet bowl and vomited. The redhead had carefully drawn her blonde hair from her face, holding it back as she retched. It wasn't until after she was done that Peyton realized that she wasn't alone. Of course, she had been jumpy about that as well.

She pulled out her phone and glanced at the screen as she received a text. It was from Brooke. Her friend was telling her where they were stopping for a little bit at a gas station. When she pulled in, she could see her companions exiting and stretching their legs, talking languidly to each other as if they hadn't a care in the world. Peyton finally awoke when Ellie barked in her ear and huddled down in her arms.

"Feel a bit better?" Rachel asked, a small concerned frown on her features.

"Not really." She stroked her puppy's fluffy head, seeming to get some kind of comfort from the fuzz below her fingers.

"C'mon. Ellie should get out and you should probably have something to make you feel better. Advil? Caffeine?" Rachel was willing to buy her anything and everything that had even the smallest chance of reassuring her or making her forget, even for a second.

"Caffeine would be good. Coffee, soda. I don't care. As long as it keeps me awake." She could tell that Peyton was scared to go to sleep. Brooke shot her a dark look when she caught sight of the blonde. In return, Peyton stiffened and cast her gaze in a different direction. Ellie wasn't very willing, but jumped out behind her in any case. The puppy earned a confused stare from the former of the two.

"Where'd the mutt come from?" Her voice was laced with as much ill-feeling as she could muster. For the first time, Peyton's eyes rose to meet hers and it wasn't a pretty expression on her face.

"Ellie."

"What?" Brooke was taken aback by the cold voice that responded to her.

"Her name is Ellie. She's not a mutt." Well, it seemed that Ellie was one of the few things, living or otherwise, that Peyton was willing to speak and stand up for. The puppy barked again and took her usual place by the teenager's feet. "Never call her that again."

With all of that said and done, Peyton turned and led her dog to a place behind the gas station where she could take care of whatever she needed to before the rest of the trip to the beach. Rachel hid her smirk and just went on her way to buy Peyton's caffeine source. She figured at a coke would do the trick. Lots of sugar.

**E **

The trip had passed in relative silence apart from the occasional song that Peyton chose to turn to on the radio. It wasn't awkward by any means; it was one of the peaceful periods of quiet. The four cars pulled up into the spacious driveway of the beach house, doors opening and excited chattering starting up once again. The boys immediately were set to work carrying luggage inside. Haley pulled Gabrielle and Bevin aside to talk rapidly in that Haley-ish way of hers.

Rachel lightly pulled Peyton from the car, but the latter seemed a bit intimidated by all of the noise and the unfamiliar territory. Her dog was acting the exact same way, oddly enough. Ellie took a slow step forward…then another….and another.

But, the puppy didn't take long before she bounded over to Haley and the other two, suspiciously barking at them as if they posed some sort of threat to Peyton. As if. The trio laughed and knelt down, looking enraptured with the hopping furball.

"If Ellie can do it, you know you have to." Rachel murmured in her head, catching her off guard. It was a fact that Peyton had accepted, but hardly liked. Nevertheless, she made sure that Rachel was close by before heading up the steps to the front door.

It was to her dismay, and Rachel's surprise, that she discovered that everyone had plans for the following night. Everyone except for a certain three women with different hair colors. Haley and Nathan had planned a night alone since they had gone out partying with everyone else the first night. Bevin, Skills, Lucas, Mouth and Gabrielle had planned another little outing.

Rachel strongly suspected that Haley had set it up with the idea of trying to get a certain pair to reconcile. So, everyone was busy and Brooke, Peyton and Rachel were all left alone in the big house with a puppy that felt no love, currently, for the brunette.

"You know…there's a hot-tub, right?" Rachel directed the comment at her blonde friend, knowing just how desperate she was to get out of the room. She also knew that it would probably help her relax, which was a huge goal of hers. "You should get in there for a while, Peyton, okay? We'll join you in a bit."

Peyton nodded without making a sound and made her escape for the room she was staying in. With that done and out of the way, Rachel turned to speak to Brooke. The brunette seemed bemused by what she had just said and was waiting for an explanation.

"Why can't you just ease up? Brooke, I've told you she's-" Brooke cut her off with an angry interjection.

"Been through a lot, I get it. But you never tell me what. I know about psycho Derek and her moms dying and real Derek getting reassigned, but you never cared before. All of the sudden you just start defending her and you won't tell me anything, Rachel. So, what? What else has she been through that I don't know about? What could possibly be worse than everything else?" Her tone was challenging, baiting her to just spill each secret.

"Not my place, Brooke. Ask her yourself." Rachel wouldn't rise to it and betray her. It wasn't even an option in her mind.

"Rachel –"

"No, Brooke. I'm not doing this to her." Rachel added something else in a darker tone before turning to grab her own bathing suit, "She's already had enough people hurt her. I'm not about to become just another one of them."

Brooke sat there, mystified and a bit hurt. What the hell was that crazy bitch talking about? What could possibly have happened that she didn't know about? She sat there for a minute, thinking it over. Nothing was quite making sense, but she would find out one way or another. Brooke got to her feet and walked in the opposite direction. She was in the room with Gabrielle.

The head cheerleader took her time looking for the right suit. Nothing made much sense to her anymore. Rachel protecting Peyton sure as hell didn't seem right. She settled on a black bikini and changed at a leisurely pace. Goddamn that girl, now the question would be bugging her for the rest of the time there. She planned on figuring out just what was going on, either from Rachel or from Peyton herself.

Brooke carried a towel over one shoulder and stopped when she heard voices as she neared the hot tub. She was just quiet enough to stand just inside the porch doors, listening in on what she could. Rachel was smart, she wouldn't randomly blab with the possibility of Brooke listening in.

She didn't need to. Brooke's mouth opened, her eyes growing just a little wider from what she could see of Peyton's upper back. Rachel sat on the edge of the warm churning water, looking down at the blonde who winced every time she had to move her shoulder. How could she not have noticed before?

** L **


	3. Fight to Survive

**AN – Once again, thank you for the reviews. I do not own any part of One Tree Hill, if I did…well, it'd be different. As a side note, Primal Fear isn't my favorite artist…in fact they really aren't my style, but the lyrics of the song just seemed to fit. Oh, and to Jaceyisonfiyah, you're welcome to IM me. I don't get that stalkery vibe from you.**

**Chapter Three – **Fight To Survive

_Song by Primal Fear_

"_See? It's not so easy getting back in the ring. Especially with the one who knocked you out in the first place." – Nathan Scott to Brooke Davis_

**P**

Peyton Sawyer had been completely mortified when she discovered that Brooke had seen her bare shoulders in the hot tub. She had allowed Rachel to voice some empty excuse about how she had taken a spill on the staircase and accidentally slammed her back onto the steps. Pure bullshit. But Brooke didn't need to know that. She knew that the brunette wasn't stupid; knew that she had seen the bite that Devin had left upon her.

She had been avoiding the brunette like the plague for the next two days, panicking whenever Haley tried to lure Rachel out of the house at nights to leave her alone with Brooke. Haley was just trying to help, as always, but she had no idea what might happen if they were left with only each other for companionship. Well, and Ellie, but the little puppy wasn't overly fond of Brooke.

In fact, she could hear Ellie barking accusingly at Brooke at that very moment. Ellie had a very loud, if not high pitched, bark that would eventually develop into the booming echo that German Shepherds did so well. The only way she knew it was Brooke was by the sheer volume and frequency of the yaps. She turned around in front of the mirror, contemplating herself nervously.

Her pale legs were clad in loose, kind of too big, black shorts. She had taken precautions and gratefully let Rachel dab cover-up onto the marks that covered her shoulders and back. Why was she suddenly being paranoid about it? Well, she had always been a bit paranoid about those markings, but now that Brooke knew that they were there, she had noticed her trying to get a better view.

Actually, Brooke had been trying to get her alone ever since the hot tub incident. Rachel wasn't stupid. She knew that Haley and Brooke would figure out something eventually to get her out of the house for a night. They weren't exactly covert about the whole "operation."

"Peyton?"

She jumped, her heart rate doubling in a split second as she spun around, green eyes wide. Her arms automatically folded protectively over her chest, her spin rigid with tension. Talk about fight or flight overreaction.

Could it be considered an overreaction after everything else?

"Hey, how are you doing?" Just hearing her voice had a calming effect on her. The blonde relaxed and slipped back to sit on the edge of her bed. Rachel looked half confused and half worried. Peyton waved it off with a forced smile as she looked down and contemplated her fingers. The redhead before her gave another one of her little smiles before carefully closing the door and taking a seat next to her.

"Peyton," At hearing the tone, she looked up with a small frown. "Well, we could have a problem. Brooke cornered me earlier today, before you woke up actually."

_**E**_

"_Rachel." The voice was edgy. She straightened up from where she was examining a thin and silky dark blue shirt, turning to face the agitated brunette. Brooke did not look happy at all. "We need to talk."_

"_Aren't we already doing that?" Rachel decided to be a smartass about it, acting as though she hadn't a clue what it was leading to. Inwardly, she was panicking. Peyton didn't want Brooke to know. No one else was supposed to find out. Now, she would have to figure out some way to turn it all around and make it better._

"_Don't you dare start with that," She sighed inwardly and dropped the blasé façade she had been enlisting to help her keep cool. No matter how this little encounter would turn out, she knew that the time for Peyton to tell someone – maybe Brooke, maybe not – about what had happened to her during prom. She had certainly _not_ just refused to go to listen to her music or be 'emo.' _

"_What's this about?" Rachel was being cautious about every little detail of her body language and expressions, not wanting anything to slip. She needed Peyton to be able to trust her._

"_Peyton's shoulders." Brooke's tone was short and her words clipped, putting an emphasis on her anger. Woah. What the heck was with B. Davis this morning? What – was she PMSing or something? "How could you not tell me? What happened to Peyton?"_

"_What the hell are you talking about?" The eyes staring into her own flashed dangerously. Okay, maybe that hadn't been the best of ideas. She would need to try something else to make her stop speculating about those bruises. Hell, at least she hadn't seen Devin's name permanently carved into her ex-best friends flesh. She didn't know half of the things that –_

"_Rachel." Right, right, no stalling. _

"_Oh, that little bruise? It's nothing. I asked her about it, she said that it was just from her being clumsy and tripping down some steps. It's not a big deal, Brooke." Immediately she could tell that the head cheerleader didn't believe a word that was coming out of her mouth. Brooke looked even angrier than before, even a bit insulted._

"_Do you think I'm moronic? There is no way those came from stairs. Someone gave her those…" An odd expression fell over her features, eyes narrowing with something. What was that? Suspicion? "…Did you do something to her Rachel?"_

_That question caught her totally off-guard, but she managed to catch any slip-ups just in time. She never thought that Brooke would suspect her of doing that. Rachel felt a sudden rush of anger fill her belly, her thoughts freezing for a couple of minutes. All she could do was stare blankly at the other with a partly opened mouth. And then her brain tripped into overload, her lips pressing into a thin line. _

"_Why the hell would I do anything to her?" Brooke's eyes never wavered, her face stony. "Anyway, even if I had, why would you care? You've spent the last couple of months doing nothing but ignore and mock her. For God's sake, Brooke, you insulted her the death of her mothers. That little comment: Your 'I love yous' are a kiss of death, or whatever the fuck you said. You know what? That really got to her. Do you have any idea how that affected the way she thinks?"_

_It was then that Brooke's face fell a bit. She looked confused and disbelieving at what she had just said. "Rachel. Peyton wouldn't have let that get to her. She even gave me one of her snippy comments after I said that…" She had the voice of someone that wanted to trust what they were saying, but just wasn't sure._

"_That… is something you're very wrong about. She still valued what you said then, Brooke. It was pretty much burned in her brain after that. You have no idea how much she still hates me getting 'too close' to her. She says that I'll probably be the next to die, Brooke." Rachel's tone bordered on venomous as she spoke. She was struggling to keep herself under control. How dare this bitch accuse her of hurting Peyton? She had been the only one there for Peyton since the attack!_

"_Rachel… I need to talk to –" _

"_No, Brooke. You've done enough damage right now. Just leave her alone. At least for a while." Rachel turned and finished the last bit of her tirade, her muscles bunched together under her skin, tense and ready to spring. "And that wasn't a request. That was an order."_

**Y**

"But, Peyton…we can only keep her in the dark for so long, you know?" The blonde nodded as she watched her friend – and her protector – frown in a way that showed that she was clearly disappointed in herself for not being able to completely keep their dark secret hidden from the world. "And, you're going to have to avoid her by yourself tonight. Haley and Brooke finally schemed me into leaving her alone with you. I'll try not to be gone too long, and you always have Ellie."

God, that was such a nice sentence to hear.

The puppy crept out from under the bed. She had slipped in the door after Rachel and snuggled into her usual resting spot. It was actually quite useful because no one knew exactly where she was until she rocketed out in a high-pitched barking frenzy, needle sharp teeth gleaming from beneath raised hackles. She only did that to people who threatened, scared or otherwise made Peyton uncomfortable. Apart from that, she would snarl at those she didn't like. Brooke happened to be on the latter of the lists.

"I'm really sorry, but Haley arranged some music thing. I know that you really don't like leaving the house right now, so I had to go. None of the others quite knows their music as well." Her redheaded counterpart had a wry smile on her red lips. "As always, the boys have something planned. Undoubtedly it's an absurd boy ritual of some kind."

Peyton nodded in agreement, but she found her body tightening with panic at the mere thought of being alone with Brooke. Her oldest companion had abandoned her for telling the truth. She had ridiculed the deaths of her mothers and everything that happened to her. She hadn't even made the slightest effort to come see her after Derek – no – Devin's first attack. Hell, Peyton hadn't even seen her look concerned at school afterwards. It was as if she simply didn't care if she lived or died.

So, Peyton had thrown away whatever residual feelings of hope or anger or really anything that concerned the brunette she had once considered family. What a pitiful notion that was. Family. In Tree Hill? Not likely. Well…

Her eyes flitted up to Rachel's face, examining each feature for a moment. Interestingly, she had found herself wanting to get to know the girl better. The redhead, the one who had been Brooke's worst enemy, had somehow become her caretaker and, in some ways, her provider. If there was one thing that Peyton was happy about, it was that she no longer had to abide by those damned friendship rules that Brooke was so keen on. She could associate with whomever she felt like.

Rachel was talking absently about what Haley had set-up, but Peyton found herself more interested in the way she just seemed uplifted by the prospect of music. She could also see that regret and worry behind the gleaming eyes. Those were being felt for no one else apart from Peyton. Her alone. Rachel's fingers were gently scratching Ellie behind the ear and the puppy had her head in Rachel's lap, basking in the attention.

"Anyway, are you gonna be okay here with her? I can totally just go up to Haley right now and tell her that I changed my mind and I really can't do it." Peyton found herself amazed at the sincerity in her voice.

"No – no, you should go. Haley can't do all the music stuff by herself. A rock star can only do so much, right?" She put on a brave face, knowing that the slightest sign of her discomfort would cause Rachel to call it off. More than that, she just felt like she should let Rachel get out of the house for a while. She hadn't left once unless Peyton was there with her, dutifully looking out for her wellbeing. Brooke could hardly get within a five-foot radius without being glared at by a very irritable Rachel or a very protective ball of fluff.

They fell into calm silence, fractured only by the sound of Ellie as she hopped down from her comfortable place on the bed, her small fangs poking out from her jaws as she stalked towards the door. There was a soft growling as she pawed at the door, the fur bristling up along her back. Well…either it was a psycho…or it was –

"Peyton, I really – Rachel?" Brooke looked confused, though she immediately seemed awkward. Clearly she hadn't taken Rachel's threat to heart, as she should have. It was her mistake. She warily cast her eyes down to Ellie who sat squarely in front of her path, those hackles lifting up to intimidate with sharp teeth.

"Rachel…I didn't know you'd be in here." She just couldn't manage to keep her eyes off of that little dog by her feet; the prospect of being torn to shreds by a seventeen-pound puppy wasn't comforting. Finally she asked, in a voice laced with uncertainty, "Could you call off Fido?"

Peyton glanced at Rachel, relishing the comfort brought to her by the redhead's hand slipping into her own. She took it as a reassuring sign that Rachel thought it was okay to call Ellie off her bodyguard duty. It was only then that she whistled softly to her dog. The fur ball immediately turned, ran and leapt onto the bed, crouching behind Peyton. Her wet nose poked through and she pushed her head under her owner's arm.

"So…Rachel, do you think I could talk to Fake Blondie here?" Brooke seemed to be trying to put Rachel at peace with the idea of the pair talking. Unfortunately, it wasn't working. Not even a little bit. Those intense eyes flickered with several emotions, not a one lingering long enough to be identified.

"It's Peyton's choice, not mine." She seemed to be pleasant enough, but Peyton could see the underlying aggravation that lurked there. Rachel was clearly (to Peyton) angered by Brooke's disregard for her warnings. Peyton took a full two minutes to just look over her ex-best friend's appearance. She appeared to be…healthy. It was good. Nothing big had really happened to change her condition of health. Peyton was actually the smallest bit jealous. She knew how she would look if she saw what lay hidden under the large clothes she donned day after day.

After her few moments of contemplation she turned to Rachel, holding her arms tighter around herself. Peyton knew that she wouldn't need to say anything. Over the past two weeks, Rachel had picked up a talent for figuring out how to realize what she was saying without actually hearing the words.

"Sorry, Brooke. She really isn't up to talking to you right now," Peyton timidly lifted green eyes to meet those of the brunette. Brooke had an expression of surprise and even the smallest hint of hurt. Quickly, she kicked herself for being daring enough to even look Brooke in the face and hurriedly turned her gaze down. "But, you have tonight."

Peyton could hear that warning note in Rachel's voice. She needn't look at her to know that she, most likely, had that stony and subtly protective look in her eyes. Rachel Gatina – defending her from what she could. She scooted back onto the bed more. She vaguely heard Brooke's sigh. It was one of defeat. Soon it was followed by the sound of departing footsteps.

"You okay?"

How many ways could she answer that question?

"Peachy." Peyton murmured softly, but suddenly realized that she had failed to cover a bruises on her ankles and a third on her left knee. Green irises caught sight of a small black scrunchie around Rachel's wrist, the elastic band leaving a faint red outline.

An image of rough, braided ropes flashed through her mind. In that moment she could feel the hard, cruel hands tightening the bindings around her ankles. Devin's whispered commentary of what he would do to her flooded her mind, the ropes burning against her bare skin every time she tried to move her legs together from where they were bound to the chair legs. He had used very detailed descriptions and explicit terminology as he fastened her wrists together. Devin had been none too gentle, his rough palms pawing at every inch of naked flesh he could –

"Peyton? Peyton!"

That voice, full of concern and panic, echoed in her memories. It started drawing her back from the dark place that haunted her dreams and warped them into nightmares. Warm, supportive hands slipped around her shoulders and waist. They pulled her close to the form of another. It took her a minute to fully return to the present.

She hadn't realized the kind of physical and emotional reaction those memories had triggered. Her whole body was shaking violently even as Rachel gently stroked her back and rocked her, all the while murmuring comforting noises to try and calm her. Peyton felt that sense of safety slowly return as the redhead held her. Her heart rate began to decrease back to normal. She felt shame grow in her chest at the knowledge that it had been a simple hair scrunchie that set her off.

"I'm sorry…" She said in a barely audible voice. The arm tightened around her middle slightly, keeping her firmly on the bed when she tried to pull herself away. Rachel turned Peyton to face her, making sure that she couldn't go off scared and alone.

"Peyton, it's not your fault. You have no reason to apology." Every word was calm and confident, "Some psycho bastard hurt you. You didn't ask for it to happen, it just did and you're not to blame for that. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Peyton finally gave up on her pathetic little half-hearted struggle against Rachel's strong grasp. It wasn't like she actually wanted Rachel to let her go. Their eyes met and didn't part for several moments until Peyton shrank back into Rachel, her arms around her neck as she clung on for dear life. They just remained there as the minutes drew out longer and longer.

**T**

Peyton hid in the corner of Haley and Nathan's room, knowing that it would be the last place that Brooke looked. They had been left to their own devices almost two hours ago and Rachel still hadn't returned with Haley and the others. True, Ellie stuck to her like a very cute and fluffy leech. Still, Peyton couldn't help but feel alone.

It all made her emotions go haywire. She hadn't become adjusted to long hours without Rachel. It was probably the one flaw with their recovery plan. The plan just wouldn't work if Peyton were left alone. Of course, it may have just been the fact that the girl she was alone with happened to be Brooke Davis.

Her knees were pulled to her chest, her arms clutching them to her securely. At the beginning of the night, Brooke had cautiously attempted to approach her to talk. Well, bad luck for her. Peyton had given her a solitary confused and flighty stare before vanishing to another room.

She sighed as she climbed up onto the plush bed, curling into a tight little ball. Peyton used one small hand to pull the comforter over her, cocooning her in a safe wrap of warmth. Her lids felt leaden, threatening to slide shut and close out the world around her. It was so tempting to just let it all fall away, if only for a couple of hours.

All it took was that one second of weakness. Just one second of wanting it; it overtook her, pulling her into the realms of unconsciousness, encasing her in its dark and velvety embrace. When she had tried to stop herself from going to sleep, it just dragged her down more insistently. And then she couldn't find the strength to fight it anymore.

_God…_

_It was so cold. So, so very cold. The blood in her veins ran about as smoothly as ice cubes over rock. Her body was gripped with chills as she groggily tried to figure out where in the hell she was. The small one-by-two foot window allowed a minute amount of light to pour in from the sunny day outside. She knew that she should be feeling the heat from each ray of sunshine. _

_And yet, she just felt like a thick freezing fog had settled over the room. In fact, now that she was actually getting her mind together, she saw that there was, indeed, a mist present in spite of the sun. The oddest thing was that the window was clear, but the room was clouded over everywhere else. Her heart rate increased, spurred on by the apprehensive wave that flooded over her. _

_She was standing, frozen to the spot, in the middle of the room. Then there were footsteps. They stepped precisely and ominously beyond her field of vision through the substantial layer mist. Finally the rough hands squeezed her shoulders tightly and without mercy. The breath of a demon licked her neck and ears, promising to deliver her to the furthermost depths of hell. _

_Suddenly, there she was again. She felt her body shaking uncontrollably in his grasp, his hands violently tearing at each garment of clothing that he could reach. The demon ripped her dress away, the beautiful white gown she would have worn to prom with Lucas. From there he removed her underwear and bra with a ferocity that primal beasts possessed._

_Peyton felt her back forced against the hard, unwavering wooden chair. Her arms were twisted around behind her back. The pain raced up her arms from her wrists and to her shoulders. She found her arms restrained tightly behind her. The demon grinned sadistically as he studied her with his clear blue eyes, as a lion would survey a gazelle. Though, she would have preferred the gazelle's ending than her own survival. _

_Her legs had been tied apart, one to each chair leg. His intentions had never been more real to her before that moment. Before that, she knew what he wanted to do but didn't really believe it. It couldn't happen to her. Too much had already happened to try and pick away at her soul. Why would someone add onto all of that pain and hurt that she had felt in her life?_

_The blonde haired demon had that lecherous look on his face as he took in every inch of her. The mist grew thicker, blocking out the orange and red streams that longed to burst through and save her from the darkness. Calloused hands slipped onto either knee, rubbing with the thumb on each hand. The palms slowly started moving up her legs, reaching her inner thighs. For the first time since the attack, she felt so truly alone. There was no Rachel – no Lucas – no one to help her or comfort her. No one to tell her that everything would be okay. No a single person there to say that they would protect her from further harm. Rachel wouldn't rescue her from this. Brooke didn't care._

_She opened her mouth to scream, only to find herself blocked by that same violating hand that had rested somewhere else just moments before. The terror was numbing and kept her from trying to take further action against the spawn of hell that she had so readily welcomed into her life. She had trusted him and hadn't taken the precautions she should have. She hadn't listened to Lucas when he tried to warn her. She hadn't wanted to believe that it was all just another lie. Now she was paying the price in blood and by being ravaged by the one that she had grown to trust so fast and without any logical reason._

_Her eyes were wide and pleading, trying to beg him to stop the madness. Even as she did, she knew it was pointless. The mist thickened, almost blocking out that red light completely. She just needed it to bust through the overwhelming despair and fog that filled the room. She could sense that if only it would reach her – everything would be fine. But, much to her horror and her increasing fear, the veil darkened and started to block out that bright red glow._

"_Rachel…" Her voice was nothing but a whisper as the demon closed in on her._

"_You're mine, Peyton." His voice hissed as he started unzipping his jeans–_

"Peyton!"

She found herself sobbing and trembling violently, tears streaming down her face as she shook. An unfamiliar smell, like lilies, reached her senses and she looked up before cringing away. Brooke sat there next to her, her expression one of alarm and concern.

"Peyton…please talk to me."

The blonde couldn't catch her breath; she was hyperventilating. Her world started spinning, her vision blurring as she struggled against her panic. She felt soft, pacifying hands rub her back. The next thing she knew, she was being drawn against the chest of her ex-best friend. Peyton whimpered, biting her lip hard enough to draw blood. She was trying to keep herself from crying out and giving her pain a voice of its own. Brooke never gave up; she still just sat there and held her. The brunette gently rocked her and murmured in her ear to try and establish some kind of trust with her.

Peyton only had one desire. She wanted Rachel to come back to the beach house. She wanted her to come back and tell her that everything would be okay; that she would be there to protect her from all of the obscene. Unfortunately, she didn't have Rachel. She just had Brooke.

Their greens eyes met, only for a moment. She didn't want to accidentally transfer her suffering to Brooke via eye contact. Peyton didn't want her to see everything that had happened to her. Brooke just pulled her close again, brushing back her hair with a feather-light touch. After knowing Brooke for over ten years, she knew how the girl would be feeling about then. She'd feel helpless and sad because she hadn't been able to figure out what was wrong with the girl she used to affectionately call P. Sawyer.

"Peyton, talk to me. What's wrong?" Brooke sounded sincere enough for her. "Did Rachel do something to you?"

For the first time, she managed to control her tears and breathing for a moment. "No…Rachel…never." Sure, it wasn't the best speech, but she couldn't have Brooke going around telling people that her only hero had hurt her in some way.

"Please, tell me what happened to you?" Had she kept her gaze on Brooke instead of shakily clutching onto her, she would have seen the brunette's eyes widen as she caught sight of the blonde's legs. Around her ankles were identical bruises that looked as if –

"Peyton…did someone," She choked on her next words, hardly believing what she was about to ask. "Did someone tie you up?"

Peyton couldn't find the words to speak properly, so she opted for a mute communication. In response, she simply nodded once, her hands tightly clinging to Brooke's arm as she cried silently. Brooke's facial features barely managed to stay under control. She looked sick and angry all at the same moment. The broody cheerleader really didn't want to let go of Brooke. With no one else to console her, she really wasn't picky.

"Peyton…how many of these do you have? Who did this to you?" She didn't want to upset the young woman by sounding angry, but Brooke could barely contain what she was feeling at that moment. Her eyes were like smoldering green embers and usually pretty face was full of self-loathing.

"I…can't…not without Rachel…" She was whimpering again, still refusing to lift her head. She felt tired again, but was afraid to return to sleep. People were supposed to escape into their mystical, otherworldly dream manifestations. They were supposed to just be able to rest. But, no, Devin had taken that from her. She could never get a good night's sleep unless she knew that Rachel was somewhere close by to help her should something happen. She never wanted to feel so powerless and alone again, but couldn't find the heart to be strong and confident or secure with life.

"It's okay…we'll just wait then." The next thing she knew, she was under the blankets, Ellie still staring menacingly at Brooke. The little fur-ball just wouldn't take her eyes off of her. It was almost as if she thought Brooke would cause her girl even more pain to live through and have nightmares about. And so, Peyton managed to catch an hour or two of uninterrupted sleep. She wasn't plagued by the recurring visions of torture she had been put through. Peyton was able to wake up some time later and feel that protective presence nearby.

Rachel was back.

She rolled over, knowing how she must look from all of that crying. Rachel just smiled at her in that way of hers; the smile that just made her calm even if it wasn't for long. Peyton missed the security the smile provided whenever Rachel wasn't there. Her eyes fell to the third occupant of the room. Brooke hadn't left. She just stood back, waiting for something. Rachel leaned forward and smoothed Peyton's silken tendrils of sun-kissed blonde hair. It was a reassuring gesture that somehow made her feel as if she wouldn't like the next part to come.

It was then that Rachel turned and looked to Brooke. She lifted a hand and curled her fingers at her. "Brooke, come here. We need to talk. All of us."

**O**

And that's it for the chapter. As always, read and review. Flames, constructive crit, I'm welcome to it. Hope you all enjoyed it!

**N**


	4. Kill The Messenger

**AN:** Hello all, welcome to the fourth chapter of Disintegration! Leythe, I must thank you for the burst of inspiration you provided me with. So, you I can guarantee a Nathan & Peyton platonic scene in a future chapter. As always, I thank you all for the reviews. I love reading what people have to say about my writing! Such an awesome episode of One Tree Hill on Wednesday, though! Breyton friendship is so refreshing, as is Rachel and Mouth. Oh, and I have one question for my readers – do you want me to put up the first chapter of The Word Why next and have them both going at the same time or wait until I'm finished with Disintegration?

**X x X**

**Chapter Four: **Kill The Messenger

_Song by Jack's Mannequin_

**- BR -**

Brooke Penelope Davis didn't have the faintest clue what to expect from the conversation to happen. That dog, Ellie, wouldn't stop watching her. Yeah, she had gotten the message loud and clear. Hurting Peyton was a sure fire way to reserve her place a nice hole in the cemetery back home in Tree Hill. Ellie wouldn't take kindly to any threat she posed to the blonde.

Despite her best efforts, she just couldn't keep her eyes off of those deep purple and green marks on her ankles. The puppy stiffly stalked across the bed, making sure to make herself a barrier between Brooke and Peyton. Rachel allowed the briefest of smiles to light up her features. Brooke knew that she loved the fact that the puppy was so protective. At least someone would be there for Peyton even when she wasn't.

There was a moment ruled by nothing but silence. Even more than that, Peyton's anxiety was almost as pronounced. She was hugging her knees to her chest, keeping her eyes fixed anywhere except for Brooke or even her general direction.

"Brooke," The brunette stopped her little staring contest with Ellie. She had lost to a frickin' dog. Rachel had her full attention now. "You remember prom night, right?"

Brooke wanted to cringe at the very thought. The entire revelation of Peyton's had definitely struck a chord. She remembered being such a bad person and doing those terrible things to try and make Peyton suffer. It seemed that she really hadn't needed any help suffering, someone else was already making sure of that.

"_Why do I care? Brooke, this has been one of the worst years of my life and I needed my best friend more than ever and _**you**_ cut me out because I was honest with you! And you were never, ever honest with me!"_

"_Peyton-"_

"_You made fun of my mom's death, Brooke. You knew her, you cried with me when she died and now, you use her as a punch-line for a joke to hurt me. It hurt, it did, but not anymore. Because you and me? We're done. You were right. She's dead. As far as I'm concerned, so are you."_

Brooke would never forget that moment of clarity and self-loathing and confusion. It was the day she truly lost her best friend. That was the day that Peyton stopped caring about her; not even caring enough to hate her. She knew that she had said things to elicit certain reactions and emotions from her, but hadn't ever taken the time to think over what she said.

"Peyton," The blonde ducked her head, closing her eyes as though to calm herself. Rachel continued on, looking as though she would rather stick her hand in a vat of acid than make Peyton relieve – whatever it was. "She was waiting for Lucas to pick her up for prom…but he wasn't there when she answered the door. De – _he_ was there. It's actually because of him that we figured out his real name."

"What?" Brooke was perplexed, her brow knitting together as she tried to figure out what the hell that meant. Rachel softly rubbed Peyton's back, urging her without words to do something. The blonde refused for a moment, but eventually gave in. She stood shakily, her green eyes still flitting everywhere except for Brooke. Rachel joined her, allowing the nervous blonde to squeeze her hand tightly as she pulled the bottoms down just enough to see that sadistic scars left by…Devin.

Brooke could only assume that it was his name. After all, each deep, jagged cut was part of a letter. D-e-v-i-n. Still healing…it hadn't been that long ago. She felt her stomach twist as she simply stared openly at the fading crimson lines and a couple of them still bleeding a little whenever Peyton accidentally brushed against something, her mind very slow on the comprehension of such an injury. It was beyond cruel and barbaric. He had marked Peyton for his own in a way that nothing short of surgery could cure. Otherwise, it would forever stain her body and she'd never truly be able to get over it with such a constant reminder.

Apart from that, even on those few inches of bare skin, Brooke could clearly count at least five darkly colored blemishes. Small incisions flecked her skin with their edges still red and healing. Her intestines squirmed even more, bile threatening to rise up her throat and show itself.

"This psycho, Devin," Rachel continued on, her comforting hand still with Peyton, "He held Peyton in her basement for hours…all during the prom. He – he took pictures." Even Rachel's voice bordered on ill at the very thought. Her former friend just stared at the ground, her features suddenly devoid of all emotion. She was pulling back into herself to avoid breaking down. Brooke remembered when Peyton had done that for a couple of weeks after her mother died. She would just sit down under that bridge, staring off at the concrete surface below. It was those times that had scared Brooke the most.

Rachel kindly touched Peyton's arm, murmuring inaudibly into her ear. Visibly, Peyton's body seemed to loosen up a little bit. She stood and flitted to the bathroom without a sound. Brooke turned her eyes to Rachel in her bemusement.

"I told her she could go take a shower. She does that a lot. I don't think I need to go into detail about exactly what he did to her, especially with her in the room with us." She had adopted that smooth, almost stony tone of voice once again. The sound of the running shower water came through the wall, muffled slightly. "Now, do you really want to know what happened? Because, hell, it gives me nightmares and I didn't experience it."

Every voice of reason that she possessed said that it would be idiotic to answer with a 'yes' to that question. Unfortunately for them, she almost never listened to reason or common sense. It really wasn't the Brooke Davis way of life. And so…she nodded.

"Okay," Rachel took a deep breath and seemed to be steeling herself for what to say, "It took me about seventeen minutes to get to her house after you asked me to go. When I got there, Psycho Devin was just leaving. I actually walked right by him. He was carrying that damn camera…but, it didn't seem too important, right? Took me five minutes to find her and I only did because I heard her crying."

Brooke was a little startled to see the reaction that the redhead had as she spoke. Her manicured nails pressed forcibly into her palm as she clenched her fist. The head cheerleader could see that Rachel was visibly upset by what she was remembering. Dark hazel eyes flickered to the door as the sound of Haley and Gabrielle climbing the stairs was heard. But, after only a second or two, their voices and laughing faded away as a door closed.

"When I got down there…all of her clothes were shredded. Her arms and legs were tied together and she was just there...in the corner, crying. And, I just couldn't get her to stop bleeding. But, she wouldn't let me take her to the hospital. She kept muttering something about Devin and a small town and how people would know what happened. So, she just told me to get first aid from the closet in her bedroom. Brooke," The brunette could actually see that flash of pain in Rachel's eyes as she looked up, clearly being able to remember in vivid detail. Too vivid. "He could have killed her, Brooke. She looked terrible. Bruises everywhere, cuts, that word in her skin…"

"Rachel!"

They both started and even Ellie looked up from where she had seated herself outside of the bathroom door, ears perked and her head tilted to one side. Gabrielle opened the door, poking her head inside with an exasperated smile on her face. Gabrielle's light brown hair fell in her face, those loose threads only adding to her messy-yet-very-cute appearance.

"Haley's freaking out about some music thing and she said that she would need your help again tonight. She wanted me to come see if you were up for it and if Brooke could hang out with Peyton. I'm going a club tonight, so she thought I should invite you…where is Peyton?"

"Shower." Rachel's smirk slid over her features lazily, as if they hadn't just been talking about the torture of one Peyton Elizabeth Sawyer. "Tell Haley that I'll be ready in a few minutes and then I'll come in and talk to her about what she needs."

Gabrielle nodded, gave that small smile and then departed with the click of the closing door. That cocky grin fell away immediately, replaced by an expression that clearly showed that she was unhappy about the idea of Brooke being left alone to tend to Peyton. Of course, Ellie seemed to sense that something was wrong and, as usual, glared directly at Brooke. She was just a puppy and had already chosen the girl to blame for problems.

Sheesh, a girl can never catch a break.

Rachel stood and walked over to the dresser, examining frames containing photographs of Nathan and Haley together and having fun. Well, at least they knew that Haley wouldn't mind the whole Peyton using her shower thing. People seemed to switch rooms every night, so it didn't really matter.

"Do you think you could do it?" Brooke blinked, taken aback by the seriousness of her words.

"Do what?"

"You're not an idiot, Brooke. Do you think that you can take care of Peyton and make sure that _nothing _happens to her? If I tell Peyton that she can trust you, you better not make me a liar by doing something reckless and stupid." Rachel really was in that no-nonsense state of mind. It seemed like she was always like that when it came to Miss Broody.

"Yes. Rachel, before she trusts me, you need to trust me. I'm not going to let her get hurt." Brooke tried to quiet any fears or misgivings Rachel had about letting Peyton go with her. As far as Brooke was concerned, going out of the house would be good for Peyton. All that isolation left her with nothing but her darkest thoughts and memories. Who knew just how many of those she had?

"I know…I just need to protect her, Brooke." It seemed like a very Un-Rachel thing to say, but the redhead was sincere. Brooke took a moment to just marvel at how much Rachel had changed since she first arrived. She went from her worst enemy and trying to steal her cheerleading squad and her boyfriend from her, to an actually caring individual who would do anything to make sure that Peyton was in competent hands.

"I've got to go help Miss Hormones, so just wait for Peyton to get out of the shower and then tell her what's going on. I'll come talk to her before Haley and I leave. Nathan and Lucas will probably be with us, so Skills, Mouth and Bevin will go do something undoubtedly…_strange_ to entertain themselves. Throwing eggs at a lighthouse or something stupid like that." Rachel was obviously anything but eager about leaving Peyton in Brooke's hands, but she finally left the room.

Now, it was just Brooke, Peyton and that vicious little fluffball.

-**OO**-

It had taken three minutes for Gabrielle to convince Brooke to join her on the club night and it took Brooke about fifteen minutes to talk Peyton into going with them. Brooke really didn't like the whole idea of that much separation from other people. But, that was about to come to an end. She had patiently waited for the edgy Peyton to get dressed before pulling her out to the car. Ellie looked offended, her eyes fixed on Brooke as she took her Peyton away.

Gabrielle and Brooke chattered animatedly the entire way, both girls oblivious to the tight smile that had fixed itself on Peyton's lips. Brooke glanced back at the girl a couple of times, just to check up on her. She didn't seem to be having too much trouble, not from Brooke's perspective anyway. As soon as the passenger doors opened, the music coming from the club was obvious even through the thick, yet sleek looking doors.

"Wired. I found this the first night we were here. Nice, right?" Gabrielle grinned, carefully locking her car as she pulled out her ID. Or, rather, her fake ID that clearly stated she was twenty-one. Brooke threw a smile back at Peyton, making sure to hold her hand as they headed to the short queue outside the doors. Brooke slipped her "Gretchen" identification from her pocket and then pulled out a back-up that she had made for Peyton some time earlier that year when their friendship had been all hoes over bros and playful banter.

The sign overhead proclaimed in cool silver Mistral font that the club was, indeed, called Wired. Brooke flashed her idea, and an innocent smile, the bouncer's way. The burly man squinted at the picture and information, but Brooke felt an uneasy shiver throughout her body as she saw his eyes concentrate less on the card and more on the V-neck of her sleeveless green shirt. She carefully showed Peyton's, keeping herself positioned in front of the most vulnerable of their little group. She met the bouncer's eyes as he tried to grab a look at Peyton – well down her shirt, anyway. He looked annoyed but waved them through.

Brooke lightly dragged the girl in behind her. The club was loud and lights flashed around as though controlled by maniacal stoners. The lights spun and mixed the reds, purples and blues together so that they would sporadically create new colors, even for the briefest of seconds. The loud music and barely repressed sexuality of the entire crowd was more than familiar to her.

She was there less than ten minutes – more like six – when the first male moved in to stake a claim. He was big, darkly tanned with pale blue eyes and shaggy brown hair that was just long enough to be considered fashionable and hot; not at all ridiculous. He sported a loose, casual dark green shirt and dark jeans with faded patches from wear, not the manufacturer.

"You want to dance?" Her mind brushed off everything that she had been worrying about before. Oh, now he was hot. So completely her type. It was then that her hand slipped from Peyton's, leaving the girl to her own devices at the bar. She never really thought about it, her mind was on the man before her.

"Sure. Sounds like fun." Brooke gave him her most charming smile as he led her to the dance floor. She spotted Gabrielle some feet away with a cute guy with black hair and green eyes. Like Harry Potter, just _so_ much hotter than Potter. She caught the guy with her friend grin at the man dancing with her and the male returned the smile with an eye roll. Seemed like they were friends. Hot guys usually had hot friends.

"So, what's your name girl-who-is-so-out-of-my-league?" His voice was sincere and curious, his clear eyes sparkling. "Mine is Brendan."

"Brooke." She had to smile at how modest Brendan seemed to be about himself. His blonde friend was being cocky and, from the way Gabrielle was responding, Brooke could sense that if he didn't stop he'd be paying the bill to repair a broken nose. Gabby had an amazing right hook and uppercut. "How about your friend there?"

"Him?" The blue eyes surveyed the stereotypical surfer dude with an exasperated expression at how he was acting. Obviously, he had more sense than his companion when it came to the opposite sex. "Allan. He tends to think more with his little head than with his big one – y'know? The one that holds his brain just kind of sits there while his hormones control everything else."

"And you use your brain?" Brooke queried, looking humorous.

"I should be insulted by that – but, I'm really not." Brendan thought about it for a few short moments. "Yes, I use my brain in the big head for making choices and actually thinking about things. It took me about four minutes to work up the courage to come over and talk to you. It's really not easy to just strike up a conversation with a pretty girl you've never met before in your life."

"Well, congratulations. Was it at least worth all of the trouble?" Brooke asked innocently, a smile playing on her lips. She had to marvel at just how much she had changed since freshman year – hell, even since junior year. Usually she just would have tried to flirt with him so she could take him somewhere private, grab Peyton and then go back to the beach house. Now she was actually talking to guys about something that wasn't sexual. At least it wasn't sexual in the whole 'Let's go bang, one time stand' sort of way. Talking was good and she was good at it. It was within her immediate comfort zone.

"Of course, you're dancing with me. It was definitely worth the whole self-pep talking thing I did." He gave her a lopsided half-smile. Well, well, modest and strangely lacking in self-confidence until the moment of contact. Interesting. After another two songs and more talking, Brooke found herself sitting at a small table with Brendan, liking him more with each passing second.

Her eyes flitted away for a minute, catching sight of Gabrielle, who seemed to be having fun even though she had moved on from Allan, who strongly reminded Brooke of Chris Kellar. It was not a resemblance to be proud of, not even in the slightest. Gabrielle had picked up a guy that seemed more her type. She found Peyton at the bar, alone. It wasn't a big surprise and she probably should have gone to make sure she was okay, but she really didn't want to leave Brendan.

"Anyway Brooke, I never asked. Are you from around here?" Brendan's voice brought her back to her senses.

"Not really. Me and my friends are just here for some fun. We live in Tree Hill." Brooke smiled as her full attention was back on the boy in front of her. It was a pity that the most she was looking for was just another one night stand, otherwise the boy might've had a future in the life of Brooke Davis.

"Really? What college do you go to? Are you on a break or something?" He seemed confused as to why they were out of school; as though the only explanation was college and there was no chance of her just being a high school girl wanting some time with her friends. Well, they did have that way weird break scheduled, so they technically weren't being _rebellious_.

"Oh, uhm, about that – I'm not in college." Brooke gave him her charming little smile as she continued, "We're near high school graduation. I'm only eighteen…so, it's not like I'm jailbait."

"I've got four years on you, Brooke."

She never would have guessed that Brendan was twenty-four, he looked like he was only around her age, if not a year or so older. Eh, he wasn't breaking any underage drinking laws, needless to say. He didn't seem too disconcerted by her presence in the club, he had probably seen many other underage club occupants before her and he'd see a lot more after her.

"Brendan, when are you gonna be done with the hottie here so we can blow this place?" It was an unfamiliar voice, and quite frankly unwelcome. It turned out to be the blonde friend of Brendan's. She stiffened uncomfortably under the leer that he turned upon her, hating the feeling of those eyes slowly assessing her body. He was making her feel extremely violated even though she had all of her clothes on.

"Allan, go get a drink or something." For the first time, Brendan's face changed into something angry and annoyed. His eyes darkened and flashed. The transformation was only a couple milliseconds before going back to his charming state, but it unnerved her a little.

"Alright, alright. Just get me when you're done." Allan gave her a lewd wink before taking his leave. He brushed by her roughly, heading in the direction of the bar. Brendan rolled his eyes, trying to make her relax again.

"He's always like that after a girl blows him off. Then he'll just try and drag me to another club. After the same thing happens again, he'll repeat the little routine at least three more times before he gives up and let's me just drop him off at his dorm. He just doesn't learn from his mistakes, that's why a lot of women talk to him and then find guys that actually know what they're doing with girls." Brendan sounded playful and aggravated at the same time.

"I can imagine. He reminds me of someone I used to know." Brooke voiced what she had been thinking, though half-unaware of what she was saying. She just kept thinking of that momentary change he had undergone. It was disturbing and she knew that it would bother her until her departure from the club.

There was a sudden shout from across the crowd and most of the talking died down as people turned to see what the hell was going on. Allan looked pissed and he was shouting at a girl, waving his arms madly. Obviously he had a very bad temper and could be easily provoked. Wait –

Brooke stood up abruptly, her heart dropping. He had hit Peyton. Once, yes, only once. It was still more than enough to send the traumatized blonde into that dark place in her mind – the place that stored every bad memory and terrible experience she had been through. From what Brooke could gather, Peyton had said something that set him off and Allan, already stung from Gabrielle, had decided that enough was enough. Brooke glanced once at Brendan, catching sight of that change again. He started through the many people standing on the dance floor, Brooke in his wake.

"Allan, what the fuck are you doing?" He sounded utterly furious as he grabbed the blonde by the arm. Brooke made her way to Peyton's side, checking her over. She was kicking herself over and over mentally. She should have been keeping a closer eye on her and what was going on around her.

"What? That bitch was being a fucking tease, sitting alone; dressed like that. She led me on!" Peyton's clothes weren't even kind of revealing, but Allan was fishing for an excuse for his behavior. He continued ranting and it seemed that Peyton had pushed him and said something to try and stop his sexual advances. Brooke carefully wrapped an arm around Peyton's midsection, still beating herself up. This was not the therapeutic night she had thought it would be.

"She okay?" Gabrielle had joined them, one hand on Peyton's arm. She didn't know about what had happened to her or why Peyton seemed to have fallen apart.

"Just a little spooked. We should get her home." Brooke nodded, trying to soothe the frightened young woman in her arms.

"Brooke, wait!" Brendan hand her by the arm now and seemed desperate, "Don't go."

"I have to, my friend-"

"Is fine. She's not hurt. Allan's just being a prick, but he didn't hurt her. She doesn't need babysitting." Brendan's tone and words were pissing her off. Brooke watched him for a minute before pulling away.

"She's been through a lot, she needs me right now." Brooke tried to pull her arm away – but his hand wouldn't release its hold.

"Brooke, you can't go. I don't want you to." His face had changed from kind and relaxed to almost scary. His grip tightened harshly, nails biting into her muscle.

"Brendan, let go of me." She needed to get Peyton out of that place. Brooke felt a tendril of fear race to her heart. Why wasn't he letting go?

"No, Brooke you have to stay-"

There was the sound of a fist meeting flesh and the cracking of cartilage. Brendan stumbled back, looking stunned as he held his hand up to his nose to stop the bleeding. Gabrielle had punched him square in the face, her eyes showing just how angry she was at him.

"Back off, dickhead." With that said, she turned and helped Brooke lead the stunned Peyton outside. The cheerleading captain groaned inwardly, her heart pounding nervously in her chest. Rachel was going to kill her for letting that happen. How could she have been so stupid as to leave Peyton alone? After making sure that Peyton was safely in the car, the presently ill-tempered Gabrielle strode right back towards the bar.

As if he had known she was coming, Brendan burst right through the front doors. He was anything but a pretty sight with blood dripping from his chin from his broken nose. The man looked beyond angry as he approached nearer to Gabrielle, but the latter didn't seem the slightest bit perturbed. Brendan was snarling, his face looking nothing like the appealing picture he had presented to Brooke.

"You bitch! You're gonna pay-"

"Oh, shut-up." Knee to the groin, leg twisting and slamming to the back of his knees, foot on chest. The way she moved, it seemed relatively simple. A couple of people murmured in the crowd, others snickering at the fact that Brendan had his ass kicked by a girl. Of course, he hadn't really had much of a chance – not that he knew that. Allan was gaping from the center of the group and strongly resembled a goldfish. "Next time, try not being such an ass. Someone who is actually tougher than me is going to come along and put your sorry self in the hospital with a couple of broken bones. Oh, and wannabe Ken doll – the same goes for you."

She turned and stalked back to the car, lightly pulling a shell-shocked Brooke along with her. They left Allan standing there – still mouthing wordlessly. Gabrielle started her sleek car and was pulling out of the parking lot before Allan had fully gathered himself together. The car ride back to the beach house was silent up to the point that they were climbing the steps to the front door. Ellie could be heard barking her cute little head off inside. It was at that point that Peyton separated herself from Brooke, opting to join her faithful puppy instead.

The moment the door opened, the puppy was back to snarling even more fiercely than before at Brooke. The fluff was standing stiff along her spine, her body positioned directly in front of Peyton's feet. Brooke was annoyed by this little performance.

"Listen, furball, back off. I'm trying to help." Brooke started forward as Peyton disappeared up to her room. She could only assume that the blonde needed time to recuperate. A sharp pain shot up her leg, spreading from the ankle. That little dog bit her! She hadn't been merciful with the applied pressure from her fangs either. She felt a trickle of warm blood slip down her skin as she watched the German shepherd bound up the stairs after her master.

"Geez, Brooke, what'd you do to piss her off?" Gabrielle took her arm to help her into the living room.

"I took Peyton out of the house and got her hit by some sleazy guy in a club. She hated me before that anyway." Brooke winced as Gabrielle rolled up the leg of her jeans, carefully examining the injury. It wasn't good. Blood just kept oozing out from her veins, staining her pale skin.

"I'll go get some band-aids. You'll need it." The tall girl stood and walked in the direction of the bathroom in the hall. Before she was completely out, she turned and added something as a second thought, "Next time, how about we make it a priority not to piss off that dog? When she's older she'll be able to break bones with one bite, not just make you bleed."

"Good to know." Brooke muttered under her breath.

And, of course, they happened to have the worst timing in the world. Rachel and Haley chose that moment to walk back into the house, talking in low, calm voices. They halted when they saw the blood on Brooke's ankle.

"Brooke, are you okay?" Haley was immediately concerned, as usual. It was just her type of personality. Rachel looked confused, but held that same amount of amiable worry for the brunette.

"Damn dog bit me." Brooke glowered as that furry face peered down from the top of the stairs, ears flattened back against her skull.

"Ellie? Why would she do that?" Okay, so Brooke knew that she had to answer the next question, but she really didn't want to. She saw Rachel's eyes flickering around and knew that she was searching for Peyton's presence.

"I – kinda took Peyton out to a club. She was kinda…out of it when we got back and Ellie didn't like me in the first place. Overprotective of Peyton." And there was that expression on Rachel's face. It was one of mixed fury and overwhelming concern for Peyton. Immediately she turned and headed up the steps to where Ellie was waiting for her.

It took about half of an hour for Gabrielle to patch her up and for Brooke to convince Haley that she would be fine. She excused herself to go up and join Peyton and Rachel when they were joined by Lucas and the rest of the gang. Bevin and Skills had been out – uhm…well, they had been out. Nathan had taken a detour to pick something up for Haley. Mouth and Lucas had been hanging out around a local basketball court. It turned out that the boys had kind of split up and deviated from the initial plans they had set up.

Brooke took a minute to collect herself as she stood outside of Peyton's bedroom door – at least the one she had moved to for that night – and then forced herself to rap gingerly on the hard wood surface. It was only a moment before she found herself face to face with Rachel Gatina. The redhead did not look happy, but gestured for her to enter nevertheless. The door clicked behind her.

Peyton seemed to be sleeping on the bed; a pale blue bruise had formed at her jaw line, just below her ear. Brooke cringed and braced herself for Rachel's unavoidable tantrum to follow. But, Rachel didn't like to be predictable. She was almost eerily calm as she pointed to the place at the desk that she wanted Brooke to sit. She indulged her and guided herself to the hardback seat.

"Why'd you take her to the club?"

"I just wanted her to get out. Being in her room all day isn't healthy." Brooke knew she had adopted a defensive quality to her voice. Rachel's show of serenity was really unnerving her. She had expected shouting and maybe even a little physicality.

"So," Rachel paced a bit in front of her, her eyes distant, "You decided to take an assault and _rape_ victim to a bar where there are dozens of strangers, especially strange guys that are just waiting for the chance to find some vulnerable girl to take home."

"I'm sorry –"

"What happened?"

Okay, no apologies then.

"I don't know really, but the guy thought that she was being a tease when she wouldn't go make out with him. He said she was dressed like a tease and that she _so_ wanted him and she started it first. I was talking to his jackass of a friend." Brooke turned her eyes back to the shell of her former friend. God, she was sorry about what she had done. She had never thought something would happen to make it worse.

"Look, Brooke," Rachel turned so that she was face to face with the brunette cheerleading captain. "You just can't go take her places without telling me first. Just – don't do it again, okay?"

"Sure…" Brooke couldn't contain herself and suddenly asked the question that had been on her mind since she and Rachel started drifting apart more than usual. "Rachel, why are you so worried about her? I mean, you act as though your only purpose is to look out for her and make sure she's okay. We used to go against her – what's with the change?"

"She had no one, Brooke." Rachel's demeanor changed and she looked tired and weary. Brooke could tell that she wasn't tired of looking over Peyton, but she was more disappointed in herself for not being able to be more available for her. "Even when she was with Lucas, she never was really open with him. He'd hurt her before, nothing stopped him from doing it again. The truth is that, you abandoned her too, Brooke. When she needed someone the most, you turned your back on her. After the attack, she needed someone to count on – someone who didn't have a history of hurting her before."

Brooke cringed at the truth of her words, wanting to beat herself up with each passing second. She knew she hadn't been there for her. It was something she had come to remind herself of every day since Peyton had been attacked. She had seen her on campus and she had seen her pain. Brooke remembered trying not to care about her, trying to harden herself against the residual love she felt for her ex-BFF.

"I'm glad I found her…honestly." That statement surprised her. "It's been – an experience, taking care of her for hours every day. Sometimes she's really not open to talk and I'm okay with that. I'm there when she's about to crash and fall to pieces. I've never actually been needed like that before – you know that I see my parents about as much as you see yours…but it just affected me differently. Attention seeking due to severe emotional depravation is what the therapist called it when I was twelve. Yours parents at least lived in the same house as you, mine left me with a nanny for ten months out of the year if not more. So…I just needed to be needed."

There was something else that Rachel seemed to be keeping inside. She could tell that Rachel was trying to hide it, but Brooke could see something…else, something different. It was almost like…

"Hey, Brooke – Rachel - Peyton!" It was Haley. Bad idea for the rock star to awake the sleeping blonde in the bed. Ellie was staring at the door, growling. Rachel's body stiffened as she fixed her piercing gaze on the door. Clearly the pair of overprotective Peyton bodyguards were very displeased with the interference.

And thus would begin another catastrophe if Haley woke up Peyton.


	5. Look After You

**AN** – Thank you, lovely reviewers! I must say that trying to write a Reyton scene is more difficult when you're watching Sophia Bush die in Stay Alive. If anyone noticed, in the last chapter I forgot to add the KE to the end of Brooke's name when I was separating the sections. So, she's now Broo. _Updated addition to AN - _ I AM SOO SORRY ABOUT THE _**EXTREME**_ LATENESS. I've got an explanation, but y'all prolly don't care. So, yeah, moving on. This chapter might seem forced and it is shorter than the rest, but I wanted to get it up, so, sorry about that.

**Chapter Five** – Look After You

_Song by The Fray_

_- _**RE **–

Peyton stared hard at the picture across from her, lost in her thoughts. She had been up for a little over an hour, waiting for Rachel to come in and check on her as usual. Ellie was peacefully sleeping at the foot of her bed, one of her paws placed lazily over her small nose. The colors were blurry and bled together to form a brooding concoction of clouds and raging seawater.

The canine lifted her big eyes to watch her owner, whining a bit. Peyton reached down and stroked the puppy absently, green eyes still penetratingly focused on the rather depressing painting. Somehow it kind of calmed her down. She'd slept in that room the entire night and whenever she came out of her sleep-state, she had spent a couple of minutes fretting over the possibility of someone like Devin coming in while Rachel wasn't there. It was how she spent a lot of her time whenever she was alone in a room. The idea of something like that happening sent her into terrified shivers.

Even at that moment, Peyton missed the redhead's almost constant presence. As strange as it seemed even in her own mind, she really did feel much safer when her self-designated guardian was around to watch her. Ellie was a comfort, of course, but she was still growing. It'd be better when Ellie was eighty pounds of pure muscle and defensive aggression. The dog had, apparently, already vented some irritation on Brooke for taking her away.

"Rachel, where are you?" The blonde wondered aloud, dragging her eyes from the frame-encased pictures. She really wanted her to get to the room soon and didn't much feel like leaving only to be greeted by the apologies from a brunette girl she once called her best friend. She knew that Rachel had coldly tried to figure out what the hell Brooke had been thinking when she took her out to a _club_ of all places.

Peyton exhaled softly, leaning back onto her pillows and pulling the warm, fuzzy purple blanket over her small body. She'd lost a lot of weight since the attack. It still kind of surprised her when she looked down at her body. The sharp outline of her pelvis, flattened skin of her stomach sunken into her body and stretched taut against the diminishing muscle tissue. For all intents and purposes, she was the image of emaciation. Rachel usually tried to make her eat, but it didn't work very often. Only when she threatened her with a visit to the hospital did she actually cooperate and eat whatever her friend put in front of her.

"Hey Blondie,"

Peyton smiled, relieved to finally have Rachel back with her. It was strange, sometimes, the way she would react to her presence. A brush of her hand against Peyton's could send chills up her spine and the soft whisper of Rachel's breath near her ear was soothing in of itself. Ellie yawned her little puppy yawn, stretched and sat herself up straight, tongue lolling out between her small white teeth.

"It's nice to see you awake." Rachel's eyes almost exuded concern. Hell, her worry could have been palpable. She sat down next to the blonde, making herself right at home as she tried to discern just what she was so intent at staring at. Her dark purple silk shirt flowed down her arms, reaching far enough to cover half of her palm. Against her bare skin, Peyton had to keep herself in check to stop from trembling at the contact. "So, how are you feeling this morning?"

"Better – I'm not panicking so much anymore." She didn't add that it was only because she had Rachel back. Ellie clambered onto Peyton's stomach, plopping down once she was right in the middle. Rachel laughed and the blonde really didn't have the slightest clue as to why she was doing so. "What?"

"Smart dog." A single slender finger pointed at her tummy underneath the mass of cute puppy fluff. "Sitting on your stomach – reminding me that you must be fed or I've failed in my job as caretaker…or something that sounds less like I belong in a mortuary. Now, Peyton, what can I get you to eat? Unless you want to come downstairs, but I should warn you that Brooke is still freaking out and has this whole big apology planned out in case you decided to join the group today. I talked to her yesterday…might have gone overboard after you fell asleep, I kept her on the porch for about an hour just getting pissy."

"Not really hungry," The excuse was pitiful and Peyton that it didn't even have a chance of working. As expected, Rachel crossed her arms over her chest and continued waiting in silence. She wouldn't move from that spot unless she had some kind of food order from her companion. Ellie even looked up at her with her head tilted to the side, unrelenting in her stare. The silence closed in and, right on time, Peyton gave up and tried to think of something to satisfy Rachel's criteria for breakfast.

"Uh – cheesy scrambled eggs, toast and lucky charms?" There was the happy Rachel smile she so adored. AH - wait! Adored? Where had that come from? Bad, bad thinking. Bad brain thinking non-friend thoughts about Rachel. She pushed it to the back of her mind, summing it up to Rachel being in a position to protect and care for her. That had to be the reason for the direction her mind kept taking.

"Good girl. I'll be back up in a couple of minutes with your breakfast, okay? Take care of her Ellie." The redhead paused to tuck Peyton's golden hair behind her ear before taking her leave. Heat gripped onto her chest, creeping and crawling up her neck and face even as Rachel broke the contact between them. She'd done things like that plenty of times before, but none of those times had been able to get that reaction from her. From what she could figure, she was either sick or just feeling more grateful towards Rachel for always being there to defend her.

Rachel, on the other hand, knew exactly how she felt about the blonde and had to use all of her self-control just to their hand touching, and other such actions, purely amiable. She didn't want to freak the girl out by suddenly leaning down and planting a kiss on her lips. God, her lips were perfect…and she was having a harder time resisting that impulse. She felt something brush by her leg and glanced down. Ellie had barreled down the stairs, skidded across the wood panel floor and began barking loudly at someone in the kitchen. It wouldn't be hard to guess who it was.

"Damn it, dog, what'd I ever do to you?" A certain cheerleader sounded far more than annoyed. She sat up on a stool by the marble island in the kitchen's center, her eyes glaring down at the yapping puppy. Ellie was not happy to see that she was still around even she had bitten her in a clear, unmistakable warning.

"You took her master from the house and got her hurt, that's what." Rachel only spared a single glance for the brunette before turning and pulling the refrigerator open. Eggs, sharp cheddar cheese, milk. Fridge closed, frying pan out and nice, shiny spatula retrieved. Rachel had taken the time to learn minimal culinary skills. She was no Top Chef, but she could make eggs, toast, macaroni and cheese, spaghetti and Campbell's soup. Cereal was simply pouring tiny shapes and stuff into a bowl and adding milk and a spoon. No actual cooking involved.

"How's Peyton?" Brooke completely ignored her comment and just focused on the girl she had failed the night before. Her only reaction to Ellie nipping at her sandals were to jerk her feet higher up, but she didn't even give the pup an affronted glare. Ellie wasn't deterred by the lack of response; it actually spurred her on to act more ferocious than she usually did towards the brunette.

"She's...doing okay." Heat radiated from the stove with the metal beginning to glow a bright orange. Rachel finished effortlessly beating the eggs and milk together with cheese inside of a coffee mug. She slipped the pan onto the heated top and poured the egg mixture in. The redhead turned back to Brooke, eyeing her stonily. "I don't know if she's gonna feel like even leaving her room today, not that it would matter since Ellie's determined to rip you to shreds if you go anywhere near her."

"How nice of her, but, that's not the point." Brooke waved it off, giving Rachel a mild shock. She turned her back to the other as the young woman spoke, continuing with the steady creation of scrambled eggs. Brooke pressed on, trying to stress some point she had. "Look, I'm sorry. It was stupid and I shouldn't have taken her to a club…I shouldn't have left her by herself. I thought it would help, I really did, Rachel."

However, she had known all of this. It wasn't like anything that Brooke was telling her was a complex, unexpected revelation. Ellie lay at the base of the high stool, eyes fixated on the girl above, lips pulled back ever so slightly to reveal the small, pearly white daggers lined in her mouth. Rachel, having been so wrapped up in taking care of little goldilocks, had flat out forgotten that Brooke was still sporting a pretty bad bite from the little dog. For a minute, she felt a twinge of sympathy -

Hey, Peyton's eggs were done! Rachel lightly slid the golden eggyness onto a plate, shut off the stove and deposited the pan into the sink. One down, the two easiest up next. Toast and cereal required minimal attention during preparation. Her eyes shifted upwards and she saw Brooke's narrowed hazels just boring through her own.

"What?"

"I know you care about her and all, and you're just looking after her because of what she's been through, but…it seems like there's more to it than that. You two spend a lot of time together. I've barely been able to see you one this trip except when you're telling me to stop being an idiot. Admittedly, yeah, I seem to screw up a lot when it comes to Peyton, but that's not the point. What I'm trying to say is you're acting a lot more than like you're just trying to take care of her. Hell, and she's so damn dependant on you. You both seem to be like that…different ways, but still…" Brooke took a deep breath, and then just blurted the rest out, "You act like an overprotective boyfriend."

That certainly managed to catch Rachel's attention. She faltered only for a second before swinging back into casual-mode. She tossed an amused smile back at the girl as she slid a piece of bread into the toaster. "You're serious? A protective boyfriend. That's a new one."

"Well, I'm not the only one who noticed and thinks so." Brooke's brow furrowed, but she brushed it off quickly as she continued on, "Okay, maybe not in those words. But Gabrielle and Bevin and Haley and Lucas all have mentioned the way you two keep acting around each other. It's so…weird."

"Whatever you say," Rachel said indulgently, hoping that she was being convincing with her little uncaring act. She was counting on Brooke becoming discouraged or disoriented and just backing the hell off. But, she had absolutely no way of knowing if or when that would happen. After all, he was dealing with the one and only Brooke Davis. It could be hard trying to figure out what was going on in that brain of hers. She crossed to the pantry, pulled out the brightly colored red box covered with little shapes and a giant green Leprechaun and selected a bowl from the cabinet.

"What, none of this bugs you? Not even a little?" Brooke sounded more suspicious with each word that left her lips. It seemed to grow the moment Rachel turned back purely for the pleasure of shaking her head at her in the classic sign for, 'No, Brooke, none of it bothers me. Except maybe you right now.'

"Why should it bother me, Brookie?" She inquired in her feigned sweet tone as she popped the toast from the little machine. Brooke made a face at the 'i' added to her name, her opinion of the nickname painfully clear. Rachel set the breakfast up on a tray, making sure it was secure before she headed from the kitchen and back to the blonde. Brooke was left in a position in which she couldn't get up and follow. Why? A furball with sharp teeth was keeping her at bay.

Within the minute, Rachel was right back where she wanted to be at Peyton's side, setting the tray of food in front of her. Moments later Ellie decided to make her appearance by leaping onto the bed and attempting to stake a claim on the toast. Too bad for her that it didn't work. The canine was lifted up and placed right back down on the floor. She was disappointed, of course, but got over it when Peyton rolled her eyes and tossed a piece of the toast to her.

It only took a few moments for them to fall right into their routine of talking as though they'd known each other their whole lives. Rachel listened the best she could as she listened to everything that Peyton had to say. It had been these type of moments that brought them so close together in such a short amount of time. The times when no one was around to disturb them and they were free to just relax.

Peyton's eyes seemed to glow as they shared thoughts and experiences. She hadn't had anything like that to hold on to when Brooke abandoned her. Peyton was regaining pieces of herself, like the times they had together were almost therapeutic in some ways. Rachel loved that she trusted her enough to talk about everything to her. Scratch that – Rachel loved her. She was smitten with everything that was Peyton.

Rachel's continuous overseeing of the girl's health was drawing her ever closer to slipping up and screwing up their relationship by doing something stupid. Sometimes she found herself getting so vapid in the presence of the princess. Hell, she could've passed for a princess if she'd wanted to. The redhead had to jerk her thoughts back from where they'd been heading on that train. It seemed like that was happening a lot lately.

Then it happened. The blonde angel leaned forward, talking rapidly about something on television, and grasped Rachel's hand tightly. She felt her heart leap and prance around her chest as a spark seemed to flow through her veins faster than she could react to the contact. Peyton only paused for a moment, but said nothing about Rachel's curious behavior.

"Hey, Red, what's wrong?" Peyton broke through her shell-shocked mind, forcing her to recover more quickly. Her finger curled through Rachel's, squeezing a little due to her worry.

"Nothing, Peyton, I'm fine." Rachel felt herself smiling at the other. While she wasn't too convinced of her friend's little story, at least she didn't seem like she wanted to push the topic. So, Peyton continued on with her story about the show. Something-ville. Little? No…not tiny either. Oh, right, Smallville. Apparently her favorite character was a girl named Chloe. She was a journalist or reporter and worked at that big building with the revolving planet.

Peyton knew that she needed to tell her something – anything about how she was feeling. Keeping it locked inside of her was driving her mad. It had her talking about a show that she loved, and not even paying much attention to the details of her words. The only that stopped her was the lurking fear that Rachel would be disgusted with her.

She was enjoying the feel of Rachel's hand far more than she should have been at that moment. The familiar shiver crept up her spine, taking its dear old time. She knew that she felt something for Rachel. It may have just been a crush, but it felt so much stronger than any of those that she'd had on boys. Lucas and even Jake didn't have much on Rachel. Of course, Nathan was out of the question because it was simply weird to think about him in any romantic way anymore.

She did her best to act calm even though she was anything but that. She was completely disappointed when she felt Rachel's light fingers gently slip from her grasp, the redhead getting to her feet. Her counterpart smiled and spoke in a light voice, "You should finish up and try and get some rest. I want you to feel better, you know, get comfortable enough to come out of your room again."

Right…she was just amiable. No way Rachel felt something more towards her. It was just so unlikely. The thought cast a wave of sadness down on the blonde cheerleader as she nodded to her companion.

It was her dark reality. Rachel was still the only light shining in her abyssal world. Her smile, her voice, the way her eyes sparkled like gems when she was happy, everything about her was just amazing. The smile fell from her lips the moment Rachel closed the door behind her. Peyton paid no mind to her dog when the eager puppy leapt back to the bed in order to assist her master with breakfast. In fact, she offered the remaining bits of her food to the animal.

Her appetite had exited when Rachel had. Peyton was concerned that maybe she hadn't been comfortable with their close conditions. Ellie lay right next to the tray of food, acting like a small vacuum as she sucked down the food. A sigh passed from her lips, her hand still tingling where she felt the lingering presence of Rachel's hand in hers. Ellie whined, licking her paw as she tried to clean her fur off the milk she managed to get all over herself.

She slid back underneath the covers, turning onto her side and pushing the tray onto the bedside table as she watched the shadows following the strands of light all across the wall, like some type of dance. They twisted and reached for each other, combative and serene at the same time. They dimmed and brightened with each passing moment.

Was it just her, or did everything seem colder all of the sudden? Peyton realized that she must've closed her eyes for a bit too long, because everything had darkened to the color of cobalt. Wisps of blue and purple intertwined with the ongoing blackness or her surroundings. Beams of lavender and cerulean peered in through the window, illuminating certain sections of the carpet.

She slipped from her bed, brow furrowed as she tried to look for Ellie. She never left her…why did she choose to now? Peyton turned her head, just standing in the middle of the room as she heard voices echoing up from below. Her feet moved forward automatically to the landing at the top of the staircase, her eyes looking down on the scene below.

Bevin talked loudly about rabbits while Haley attempted to explain Heisenberg's uncertainty principle to Lucas and Nathan, both of whom were trying to beat the other at a video game. Mouth wore dark sunglasses and a rain-sodden trench coat and seemed to have no emotions whatsoever. Gabrielle was throwing soccer balls the size of walnuts at Haley, but she kept batting them away carelessly as she continued rambling on about that science law to the group at large. Skills was muttering something and coughing every few seconds, spinning a basketball on one finger.

Peyton found herself turning around again as she heard footsteps behind her followed by laughter. Bright crimson hair contrasted against the chocolate color of the other. Rachel and Brooke joked around, neither paying any attention to Peyton. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. She caught sight of her puppy as the fluff ball leapt around Brooke's feet, looking up adoringly at the pair as they proceeded down the steps to the rest of the group.

Her heart caught and hesitated in her chest as she watched the intimacy between her red headed beauty and the girl she'd once shared everything with. Their hands were held even as they took a seat away from the others. Rachel smiled that soft, caring smile that Peyton loved so much. Except, it was directed at Brooke. The cheerleading captain turned a sneer towards Peyton when Rachel leaned in to whisper in her ear.

A harsh grip wrapped itself tightly around Peyton's waist, forcing her to turn around. Devin's eyes bore darkly into her own and Peyton found that she couldn't even make a sound as she was forced into a chair, his malicious smirk twisting his features into that of the monster she'd long come to fear. She felt the familiar bindings tie around her ankles and wrists, the skin chafed, raw and red beneath the fastenings.

Her mouth opened and she screamed, trying to be as loud as she could as the sound, the first of any, ripped from her voicebox and lungs. Rachel would come get her – she was always there to help her. A moment passed and Devin began laughing at her futile attempts to gain attention. The laughter and talking from below continued ceaselessly, as though she wasn't there at all.

Devin pulled his shirt over his blond head, leaning ever closer to his captive. His hands reached down to pull off her short pajama bottoms. Her chest burned and her throat felt like it was being torn to ribbons by the force of her screams and cries.

"Peyton!"

Heart thudding against her rib cage, Peyton's fear gripped the entirety of her being, overwhelming every part of her as the sound died down and her senses attempted wildly to reorient themselves.

It was still light out.

"Peyton, it was just a nightmare." Those familiar green eyes were bright with worry and panic. Ellie had her head resting on her paws as she kept a close eye on her owner. And Brooke – wasn't there.

Brooke. Brooke had taken everything from her. She'd managed to steal the loyalties of her friends; the affection of her dog; the heart of the girl Peyton found herself falling for more with every minute. There was no way in hell she could run the risk of that happening.

"Brooke." Her breath came in shallow gasps, her eyes focusing on Rachel's as her mind raced like it was in NASCAR. The redhead looked confused at the mention of the brunette, trying to figure out what the hell Peyton was going on about.

"Peyton -" She was cut off abruptly before she even had the chance to get words out. Ellie sat up and tilted her head to one side, ears perked up curiously as she watched the pair.

Peyton, in a still-running state of fear, had taken Rachel's face in her hands and kissed her on the lips. She was so convinced, in that moment, that kissing the girl would soothe every fear and doubt that remained after the nightmare. Her partner seemed taken-aback for a moment, but she didn't pull away. As a matter of fact, Rachel had wrapped her arms around Peyton's waist and pulled her closer. For the first time in a long time, Peyton found herself feeling like the result of her actions wouldn't end in gut-wrenching misery.

Quite the opposite, really.

They had to break apart, both breathless and a bit nervous at the sudden turn of events. The blonde leaned her forehead against her teammate's and uttered out only one sentence. Her implications with saying so were obvious.

"Brooke can't have you."


End file.
